


Fire Emblem: Leif to 757

by Lord_Jujube



Category: Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu | Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War, Fire Emblem: Thracia 776
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-22
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:27:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 25,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27671335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lord_Jujube/pseuds/Lord_Jujube
Summary: Premise: Leif and Sara are transported to the year 757 by way of magic while traveling through the Dark Forest. They end up in the middle of the conflict between Grannvale and Isaach on Isaach’s side where court politics and military movement threatens to engulf the continent. I’m unsure if something like this has been done before or not, but I’m sure someone has, as I’m not an imaginative person, but I still want to write something for my own personal enjoyment and hopefully, for the enjoyment of anyone who is unlikely enough to come across this. It’s been a while since I’ve played Thracia 776 and Genealogy of the Holy War, so characterization and other matters to that effect might be off. In addition, I’m used to certain spellings more than others, so I apologize if it feels annoying to read for some in that regard.
Kudos: 6





	1. Part One: CHI - CHVII

**Author's Note:**

> Leif was spelled wrong.

Part One: Into the Past  
I: Within the Dark Forest - Prologue  
Leif had taken the advice of August to move his army south of the main road through Melfiye forest in hopes of being able to catch their enemies off guard for a final thrust on Leonster. Whereupon victory, he would be crowned in a bid to gain valuable support to the cause of liberating the peninsula from the Grann Empire, and from Arvis and the Loptyr Sect. 

“How deep are these woods sir?” Leif asked off his caretaker and most loyal knight Finn.

“We have a ways to go.” Finn replied, but suddenly he held his hands up to alert everyone to stop. In front of them was a house which looked worn but not unclean. Finn approached the house and knocked on the door. 

“Good day to you sir.” Finn said to the man in the house. “We were passing through, and wondered if you could tell us of any happenings in these woods.”

The old man looked Finn up and down, the blue haired man with his armor and Brave Spear was a dashing sight, but the sight of knights of any nation brought no joy to many of the common people of the land, and indeed, a man who had chosen to live in such a secluded place might have been more weary than most men in the world, and perhaps he’d hoped to avoid any person at all, let alone men who knew how to fight and kill. 

The old man frowned. “These woods are most dangerous now.” 

He shook his head sadly. “There’s strange men and strange beasts that we’ve seen in these woods. And sometimes you can hear shouts and screams carried by the winds.”

“Shouts and screams?” Finn asked. “From what direction?”

The old man jerked his head northward and eastward, whereupon through the thick sea of green Finn could see a part of the ground which was elevated and a foreboding building upon it. Finn frowned. He was a military man, and he wasn’t fool enough to think that it’d be easy to sneak by such a fortress without being unseen if there were patrols in the woods or ambushes to catch unwary travelers, although there were few of those in these times.

Finn thanked the old man and turned to report his findings to August and Leif, though Leif’s young ears could cut through the sound of the forests and hear faintly what had been said, August and Dorias probably didn’t have the ability to hear it, and so Finn would have to go and tell them directly what he’d learned.

“Oh wait!” Said the old man, and Finn turned around at the sound of that old man’s voice. “There’s a reason that dark beings lurk in these woods. Make sure not to get lost. You’ll find yourself where you started, or much worse.”

Finn nodded his head, but he seemed a little confused at the advice. Despite this, he relayed everything he heard to August, Dorias, and Leif. 

“It’s just as well that we went this way I suppose.” Dorias said with a sigh. “At least we might be able to avoid getting attacked from behind ourselves while moving on Lenster.”

“I should apologize to you my young lord.” August said to Leif. “I went this way to avoid danger, but I might have caused more danger to our army and your person by my actions.”

Leif shook his head. “There’s no worry August. We’d have fought or been forced to fight whether or not we’d gone this way. Your way there was a chance we wouldn’t have to fight until later.” 

Still, there was the uneasy understanding that moving through the woods with a fairly sizable army where ambushes could be lying in wait was a worrying task regardless of how capable a strategist or tactician a man was. Normally moving through a forest one would be able to hunt game, find herbs and other plants for eating which wasn’t unreasonable for an army the size of the Liberation Army. However, the fact that a local who seemed to have lived there a long time was reporting that it was unsafe to move through the woods meant that soldiers wouldn’t be able to forage easily. Water was a concern as well, if strange experiments were going on within that fortress on the high ground, perhaps the water might be poisoned or worse. Still, the presence of military and human activity also meant that there had to be sources of food or water from somewhere, whether that be in the form of supplies transported through the woods to that building or wild sources.

“What should we do my lord?” Finn asked of Leif. Even despite his age and greater experience, he never acted disrespectful or did anything to put the relationship between lord and vassal in doubt in the eyes of anyone. 

“We’ll go through this forest.” Leif said in reply. “Quietly.”

Finn nodded in assent, and he sent an order that was a whisper that soon shimmered through the ranks of the army, sounding almost like the sigh of some spirit of the wind. 

Even a whisper can be a roar in a silent forest. Leif thought to himself rather grimly. He didn’t believe that they would be able to go through the woods without anyone detecting them, but he figured that they should be cautious. 

“Have the men be alert for possible ambushes Finn.” Leif said to his mentor, and again the whispered order shimmered through the ranks of men, who were now looking about, some wearily, others merely considering it as a standard order for precaution in a dangerous situation. 

The horses, pegasi, and wyverns will be an issue. Leif thought to himself with a frown. Military horses could charge straight through a closed rank of men, but from the wars between the Grann Empire and her numerous enemies throughout the years, from Isaach to even the Emperor’s very own bastard halfbrother Azel, and now Leif himself, the supply of good horses had dwindled greatly. 

Azel was hated for fighting his brother while he still lived. Leif thought to himself. And yet, within less than a decade after his death, he was seen as a hero who saw the truth about the Emperor and his son Julius. I wonder if I’ll ever be hated like him for what I’m doing now.

Leif was usually not so introspective, but perhaps the deep forests with the wind sighing through the leaves of the trees was giving him some desire to be deep in thought, so deep that it was almost a trance. 

“Horses.” Leif turned to his mentor and vassal Finn. “If just a twig snaps, some of them might panic.” 

“It can’t be helped.” Finn replied gently. “We need horses to help move the supplies and to fight.”

When an army moves through a place like a forest, the animals and the wild responds to it. There is in the wake of the army’s movement, a space where you hear the sound of the army and no sounds of the wild. The birds and beasts are nearly silent, and it sometimes feels that even the wind will not speak in its voice at the knowing of some momentous occasion to come. 

It became quite clear at some point, that the move through the woods would become an affair of several days if they tried to move as silently and quietly as possible, and furthermore, the longer they were in the woods, the higher a chance of being discovered by patrols or otherwise, on the other hand, if they moved quickly, perhaps they might be able to get lucky and slip by the fortress. Speed was a quality that no military man was able to deny, and Leif’s own forces had rapidly moved from one place to another to survive ongoing pursuit by their enemies. Leif quietly relayed his question of whether they should move faster or not.

“We’re not rangers.” August said bluntly. “We have horses and baggage. The men are not trained for fighting or moving in a forest. The virtue of speed is something that I would never deny Leif, but the virtue of caution shouldn’t be denied either. If we try to move too fast in the hopes of avoiding an attack, we could end up being more likely to walk into one.”

Leif nodded in agreement, but he could feel frustration to an extent. While he understood that what August said was right, there was also a part of him that wished to verbally riposte and point out that August was the one who caused them to be in the current situation they were in.

No. Leif caught himself. August apologized already for his fault. I cannot embarrass him for something that he has already apologized for.

Leif was beginning to get a better grasp of the proper behavior of a lord towards his vassals. “Your advice is sound Lord August. We’ll proceed with caution.”

“There’s still the matter of foraging for food.” Dorias broke in. “Our men’s day to day needs don’t disappear because it would help us.”

There was suddenly the whiz of an arrow. Leif instinctively bent down at the sound in case an arrow might meet its mark.

“It’s ours.” August said. “It seems that the day to day needs of our men don’t disappear indeed Dorias.”

The arrow found its mark in a deer that had been unseen by Leif himself, but one of his men had apparently been able to find. He looked behind him and saw the archer make a silent cheer before moving forward to take his prize with a few other men. 

If there are enemies in the woods waiting to ambush us, with bows and with eyes as excellent as those men’s eyes are, we might be already being watched. Leif thought to himself. He looked to his advisors, wondering if they were feeling something of a similar nature, but he couldn’t detect it if it was there.

They continued trudging through the forests until they found a small stream. Leif decided to make camp there, as it was near to night. There would be no fires that night. The deer would have to be eaten raw by the men who caught it, but at least the army could quench its thirst. Leif settled in for the night in a tent where the ground allowed a tent to be placed and tried to sleep.

Leif was now used to the grime and discomfort of military life, he was used to the bugbites and the stings of little insects. He settled into sleep and woke the next morning feeling just as dirty and unpleasant as he had felt the night before. There were a few extra bumps on his hands and he felt an itch on his leg. It seems that he’d been bitten by some more bugs in the middle of the night.

The army decamped and was soon trudging forward once again, eyes still blurry with sleep. 

That was when the enemy struck.

II: Within the Dark Forest - Teleportation  
A cacophony of noise made its way to the front of the army where Leif was. It seemed that the enemy had attacked the middle of the Liberation Army, perhaps hoping to sever it in half. Leif cursed his unpreparedness. 

“How did they surprise us?” He asked of his advisors. “How?”

“Magic.” Dorias said.

Teleportation magic. Leif had used such magic himself to slay enemy leaders and find advantageous positions in battle, it hadn’t slipped his mind, but he perhaps naively, didn’t expect the enemy to attack with nothing but magic users without any form of support.

“Why would they attack like that?” Leif said. “Sending shamans right into the middle of our army.” 

Leif felt himself calmed by the clear victory before them, although a part of him also shivered at the thought of soldiers being sent right into the middle of an army and stabbed to death as soon as they were there. 

“A diversion.” August said. 

Leif frowned. The enemy hadn’t sent anything his soldiers were unable to handle. They didn’t have to divert forces to the middle of the army, and so the diversion didn’t seem effective to him. Perhaps the enemy hadn’t realized the size or ability of Leif’s force, and so it might have been an effective diversion if only Leif’s force was weaker. Perhaps this was the standard method by which the forces of Loptyr worked in that area. That method had been successful in the past, and so the same shamans had used the same method they’d always used and were destroyed because of it.

Complacency will be the death of us. Leif thought to himself. We might die just like them.

As he was thinking this to himself, shamans appeared before him and Leif drew his Light Brand and cut them down. They were many in number and Leif perhaps without thinking drew forwards to fight with them and soon found himself separated from his forces. There was Finn and Dorias and August. There were the villagers he’d convinced to join him to fight pirates on a nearby island. There was Nanna. They were close and yet far, because of these black-robed men standing in front of him with their tomes and grimoires and their muttering of incantations in the hopes of taking his life, although none succeeded.

He would slay one and another would take its place. Leif dropped the shield he was holding, completely useless in front of these men of magic and he heard harsh laughter from them. Suddenly they all rushed forwards brandishing knives and Leif swept his Light Brand about him drawing out arcs of blood from the men before him. Finn was roaring his name, but Leif could only hear him just faintly as he felt a few of the enemy’s knives met their mark. On his unshielded arm. he cursed his stupidity for dropping his shield. What was he thinking? 

He fled from the robed men, his arm trailing blood. He tore a piece of cloth from his cloak, he felt his head beating with blood and pain. His arm was screaming. 

Poison. Leif thought to himself. He could feel it, coursing up his veins perhaps toward his heart. He hoped the small measure of holy blood in his veins might keep him safe from its effects, but the pain in his arm made him doubt that possibility. Leif felt himself tumble through the woods over a steep incline. Now his head was bleeding too, and head wounds bled a lot. He cast his eyes about wildly for a trick, a trap, a danger. He couldn’t see any, but he was certain there were some of them somewhere. He ran for another ten minutes before he sat down and applied medicine to his arm and head.

The adrenaline was running out, and the pain of his arm in spite of the medicine seemed to have only deepened. There was a sharp stabbing pain when he moved the arm, the muscles were tense, and there seemed to be a dull pain in the very bones of his arm, and he swore he could feel what felt like ants crawling through his veins up his arm into his shoulder, up his neck, to his chest and side. The pain of his head wound was nothing to what was happening to the rest of him. He whispered a prayer, perhaps to the spirits of his parents, perhaps to anyone who would hear it, then his head lolled forward and he knew no more.

\---

When Leif opened his eyes again, he found his arm was bandaged more properly and the pain, although still there, was lesser than it was before, and manageable enough to move his arm. There was a girl in front of him. She was very young, although probably not more than three years younger than Leif. Her hair was white with a slight hint of the color of the thistle plant’s flower.

“Who are you?” Leif asked, somewhat warily, and perhaps, a little ungratefully considering that he’d been helped by her, albeit, while he was asleep and without necessarily being able to be certain that she was the one who’d helped him.

“I’m Sara.” The girl replied. “I know all about you. Your name is Leif. You’re the Prince of the city near this forest. Your father was Quan. Your mother was a pretty woman with rose colored hair named Ethlyn. But they both died.” 

Leif was temporarily alarmed at Sara’s knowledge of him, and he tried to lift himself from where he was sitting. 

“You don’t have to think those thoughts.” Sara said soothingly. “My parents are dead too. My mama. My papa. My papa was killed by my grandpa because he loved my mama. It was all before I was born.”

Leif still felt some unease, but there was also a longing, surprisingly painful within him, to ultimately trust this young girl speaking to him. He wanted to trust her more than anything in that moment.

“You were calling for help weren’t you? But if you want me gone I’ll go.”

And Leif felt he couldn’t see her go, so he lifted his hand out to her and he beseeched her. “Wait. I couldn’t let you leave after hearing that. I want to know more about you, so won’t you come with me?”

There was a small smile playing on the side of her lips. “Well if you say so. I like your voice, Leif.”

“Thank you Sara.” Leif said in return.

He awkwardly stood, his body still in pain while Sara watched him move painfully. Leif looked behind him and was surprised to see the trail of blood he must have left gone. He wondered whether he should go back the way he came or find another way. He wondered if other men had been scattered like he had been. 

“Well? Are we going?” Sara asked, her voice seemingly filled with mild amusement and with a little annoyance. 

“We are, we are.” Leif replied. He was a little embarrassed by her goading and began moving back the way he’d come while she followed behind. 

“I can take us faster if you’d like. With my magic.” Sara said. “There’s people around us.”

“What!” Leif exclaimed. He pulled his sword from its sheath with his good hand just as a bolt of fell magic narrowly missed him. Sara was struck but shrugged it off.

She must have great skill with magic. Leif thought to himself. She was trying to cast a spell but was stunned by another bold of magic, Leif grabbed her and ran, his arm was throbbing with pain again. Sara was still whispering her spell as he was carrying her. He could hear a sound here and there, but couldn’t quite make it out. He slipped down a hill as magic bolts were fired behind him, he and Sara rolled down the hill in a ball and when Leif stood, his arm was bleeding again, his head was bleeding again, and the black-robed men behind them were gone.

“Sorry for that.” Leif said to Sara.

“I’m more sorry.” Sara said, tilting her head. “Why are you sorry?”

Leif was confused and attempted to apologize a bit more, and she finally sighed and patting some of the dust off herself agreed to let him be sorry towards her. 

“But you aren’t allowed to be mad at me for what’s happened.” Sara said. “Because it’s partly your fault.”

Leif still didn’t understand what she was talking about, but he agreed. Sara’s warp staff was gone, so it looked like they wouldn’t be heading back anytime soon. Leif thought to himself that their position must have been south and east of where the army had been, and decided to heat north and west from where they were. Sara followed behind him. They walked and walked and walked, there were no black-robed men, and the forest didn’t seem so strange and unfriendly as it was before.

“I thought the army was north and west of where we were.” Leif said. “Other soldiers should have scattered, but I don’t see any. I don’t see any signs of fighting either.”

Leif frowned. He’d also lost his Light Brand. It brought him immense sadness to think about it. Sara had lost her warp staff, an expensive item and maybe very valuable to her, and Leif had lost his Light Brand, an heirloom left to him by his mother who he barely remembered. He cursed the fact that he could only remember the barest trace of what she looked like. As a child he’d asked Finn to describe his mother and father to him again and again, and Finn had talked about how pretty his mother was and how brave and noble his father was. He’d talked about how like either one or the other parent in this or that way Leif was. It made the fact that Leif didn’t really know them even more painful in a lot of ways. 

Sara didn’t say anything for a while. Keeping mysteriously silent. She was charming and strange, and Leif wondered if Sigurd, his mother’s brother had felt something similar when he’d met some strange woman in the middle of a forest in the midst of fighting. Sara looked at him and smiled, and Leif wondered if she knew a little of what was on his mind.

“We can light a fire.” Sara said assuringly. “Don’t worry, it’s safe.”

And despite how strange she seemed to him, Leif nodded in assent and began gathering firewood while Sara sat on a nearby tree stump. He luckily still had some water and some food which he shared with Sara, apologizing for the poor meal, although she didn’t seem to terribly mind. He was soon tired, and he tore his cloak in half, offering one half to Sara while failing to wrap himself in his own cloak, which was now too small because he’d tore his cloak. 

At least the fire is warm. He thought to himself as he watched Sara settle in for the night. He didn’t think the girl could be relied on to watch the fire, and so he tried to watch it himself. He’d heard of soldiers who managed to sleep for five minutes at a time and stay awake another five afterwards, but he didn’t seem able to do it himself.

In the morning, not very well rested, Leif yawned and kicked dirt on the fire, Sara had apparently been awake a while and had simply watched him. Leif split the remainder of the food in half and after they were done they carried on moving north and west, although Leif was now certain that something was wrong. The trees weren’t as thick, the shrubbery wasn’t cutting into his arms and legs as painfully as it had been before. 

Finally, his suspicions were vindicated when he came across a road, and then following the road, across a small village. Leif saw a long line of men and lifted himself on his tiptoes to see what they were all gathering for.

“Why are they standing in a line?” He asked, after a few seconds of failure to identify any valuable information through his tiptoe method. 

A grim looking man turned to look at him. He looked Leif up and down and his eyes rolled over the bandages on Leif’s arms and head.

“No good, no good.” The man said. “They’ll still make you fight. Did you steal that armor? You better get rid of it.”

“I didn’t steal it!” Leif replied indignantly. 

“Have any papers proving you’re a noble? Where’s your seal?” The man returned, and smirked with satisfaction when Leif’s face showed that he didn’t have his seal or papers.

“Why are people lining up?” Leif asked the man again. The man chuckled.

“I can’t read.” Said the man, “If you do own that armor, it’s a shame, you’re less informed than me.”

Leif felt unhappy with the insult, but he wasn’t going to start a fight with a stranger. “Tell me what’s happening.”

The man looked at Leif. “Thieves stealing armor are more likely to get put on the frontlines.”

Leif understood what the man meant now. “There’s a draft?”

The man nodded solemnly. “You get it now. Grannvale’s going to war, and it’s going to be with Isaach.”

Leif nodded his head in understanding, he and Sara must have been transported by warp magic far north. He’d heard of magic causing people to end up moving far greater distances than normal especially in situations like the one they’d been in, where Leif had been running with Sara, and through a forest said to be filled with magic no less. He was relieved that they’d ended up on dry land after the teleportation and not in the middle of the ocean. 

With Finn, Dorias, and August, the army is in a good situation. Leif thought to himself. I can head east and north to meet up with my cousin who should be past the Aed Desert now. 

Leif thanked the man and began heading towards the east and north, towards the shoreline where he was certain he’d be able to meet his cousin. He heard the loud thwack of the merchant selling broken arms to men who wanted to avoid the draft. 

“Get rid of the armor.” Sara said to him suddenly.

Leif looked down at his scuffed armor. It was still in fairly good condition, but he’d had to replace his weapons and armor numerous times while campaigning on the peninsula. He decided that Sara was right and sold the armor, gaining clothes, money, food, a small donkey, small knives for himself and Sara and a spear, as a good sword was too expensive and there wasn’t anything like that available in the little village.

Leif carried on cheerfully, and Sara, in an equally cheerful fashion. He’d managed to get a bath in a river and the feeling of cleanliness put him in a good mood. 

The Loptyr Sect must have had to send all of its men to the frontlines so they don’t have enough for child hunts or to police little villages. He thought to himself. Within Grannvale itself, it wouldn’t be too hard to simply travel as long as no one knew that he was the Prince of Leonster.

“We should give the donkey a name.” Sara said to Leif as he was deep in his thoughts.

“Oh you can name him.” Leif replied.

“The ass can be Leif too.” Sara said in reply. Leif turned to look at her to see if she was making fun of him, but detected nothing cruel in that strange and innocent smile, so he decided to let it go.

Their travel continued uninterrupted for several days and nights without any issue and without much talking until one day a group of armed men came across Leif and Sara.

“Where are you travelers heading?” The head of the group asked them. “You wouldn’t be trying to dodge the draft, or worse, join the enemy would you?”

Leif laughed. “Of course not. I’m loyal to Grannvale. We’re fighting in Isaach aren’t we? We’ve got to kill Shannan and Seliph am I wrong?”

The men burst into laughter, but it didn’t seem like it was because he’d been laughing. “Are you stupid kid? Who the hell is Seliph? Shannan is just a child. Why would we be fighting with him? We’re going to be taking Prince Mariccles’s head. Those Isaachian barbarians slaughtered the citizens of Darna themselves.”

Mariccles? Darna? Leif thought to himself. He knew who King Mananan was, he knew about Rivough and the slaughter in Darna but he was confused as to why that name would be brought up here. Maricle died decades ago, why would they be talking about him?

“Come with us.” The man said. “We have some talking to do.” 

“I’m heading north and east, to join the army and fight Isaach. Why do I have to come with you?” Leif replied reluctantly, he knew he could probably beat these men in a fight, but he didn’t want it to come to that when he was trying to travel quietly.

The man turned to him. “For every person who I get to join the army I get paid.” He breathed deeply. “And for every Isaachian spy, I get paid even more.”

He looked Leif and Sara up and down. “Are you an Isaachian spy?” He breathed in deeply once again. “You smell like it.”

Leif lost his temper pointing his spear at the man. “You smell gold. You don’t smell spies.”

The man chuckled. “You’re right. I sure do smell gold. Put that spear down if you don’t want me to smell blood.”

Leif was no stranger to blood, and he stabbed the man in the throat, who gurgled blood scratching at his throat and fell over all but dead, the other men nearby drew their blades but Leif was too fast for them. 

Five. Leif thought to himself, He butted one man in nose and the man reeled back grabbing his nose, the pointy end of the spear found itself buried in the face of another man cutting the tendons and muscle and skin so that his jaw was attached only on one side of his face and blood spilled from the opening. Sara had already slipped away while Leif was talking with the head of the group. 

Another man came forward and swung his sword down the length of Leif’s spear, it was a well made spear and a poorly made sword, Leif blocked and then swung the blunt end of his spear cracking into the man’s skull. The survivors slowly stumbled up and began to flee. Leif let them go because he didn’t think he’d be able to hunt them down and continued on his journey, Sara slipped out from behind the bush she was hiding and joined him.

“We’ll have to get rid of this donkey.” Leif said. “It will slow us down.” 

“Bye bye Leif.” Said Sara to Leif the Donkey.

Leif and Sara, now donkeyless, continued on northwards and eastwards. Leif certain that something had gone very wrong after the teleportation.

III: Towards Isaach  
Leif and Sara made considerable progress. He wasn’t quite sure how near they were to Isaach, and actually failed to realize that they were surprisingly close to the Aed Desert. Sara was a young girl and tired by Leif’s quick pace, so Leif carried her for some of the journey. Part of him wanted to blame her, and yet a part of him knew that it was the dark forest itself which might have caused his trouble. 

The old man warned us not to go wandering off alone. And I went and chased a bunch of shamans and got separated from the group. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Leif quietly admonished himself in his head. Leif had actually already wandered into a region that was filled with patrols by both sides: Grannvale and Isaach. He was lucky enough to find an Isaachian patrol, and one with a reasonable officer.

“Who are you?” The man asked. He noticed the spear in Leif’s hands and placed his hand on the hilt of his curved blade. He seemed less worried when he saw Sara on Leif’s back.

“I’m a friend of Isaach.” Leif said. “A friend of Isaach.”

“What’s the watchword?” The patrolman said. 

Leif felt panic welling up inside of himself. He didn’t want to kill an Isaachian. He only knew of a few men from Isaach in his Liberation Army and he respected their ability quite well. He also didn’t want to be hated in both Grannvale and in Isaach, the more practical reason. 

“I know where Prince Shannan is.” Leif replied. “I don’t know the watchword because I was far away and I got back from a long patrol.”

The patrolman looked Leif up and down one more time. “Well, whether you’re a spy for us or Grannvale, I suppose that I should take you with us to see what you know. Keep holding the girl.”

I can’t fight while holding Sara, and he knows that. Leif thought to himself. He worried that he might be slain in Mariccle’s camp, but he also hoped that if he met Mariccle he’d be able to convince Mariccle to let him fight for Isaach. He’d heard stories from Finn about Shannan and Mariccle, and while Finn didn’t know Mariccle that well himself, he knew of his reputation.

They finally made their way to the main camp and the patrolman sent Leif and Sara to Mariccle who was as impressive as Leif had heard he was. The patrolman whispered something to Mariccle who nodded his head.

“Well? Where is Prince Shannan? Where is my dear son?” Leif opened his mouth to say in the southwest in Verdane but stopped himself when he realized he didn’t know the exact timeline of events. He knew that Mariccle would lose at some point if history wasn’t changed, he knew that Shannan and Ayra were in Verdane at some point, but he wasn’t sure of the exact date. 

“They are heading towards the southwest and will be in Verdane at some point.” Leif said. “It isn’t possible for me to know their exact position, your royal highness.” 

If Isaach survives, if Mariccle can hold on for just a little while, then perhaps the Grannvale Empire can never be formed by Arvis. Leif’s thoughts were drifting far into the future. He envisioned Sigurd and Mariccle, he envisioned sending a letter to the south to his father so that the Aed Desert Massacre would never happen. Sigurd will join with my father and Mariccle and the Loptyr will never be able to rise. And my father and mother, I’ll be able to meet them, and talk with them. They won’t know it’s me, but I’ll know.

Mariccle looked in Leif’s eyes, and Leif didn’t look away, feeling like Mariccle might not trust him as much if he did. 

“I know all about you.” Sara suddenly said. “You’re Prince Mariccle. You’re going to launch a full scale attack on Grannvale despite knowing you’ll lose.”

There was a murmur of anger from the other men and women in the room. Leif was not pleased that Sara had chosen that moment to speak out. Mariccle held his hand up to signal to the other people in the room not to say anything.

“Forgive her your royal highness.” Leif said quickly. “She’s still very young.”

Mariccle was surprisingly unoffended by Sara’s statement. “Why do you think we’ll lose?” 

Sara smiled. “I don’t think you’ll lose. I know you’ll lose. Like Leif’s mother and father lost.”

Leif shushed Sara. “Really, I don’t know why she’s being like this, your royal highness, Prince Mariccle. My deepest apologies.”

“Don’t shush me.” Sara said. “If you think I’m a nuisance I’ll go away.”

Sara began to kick Leif’s back and Leif put her down. She walked right over to Prince Mariccle and smiled. “You shouldn’t die. It’d make Shannan sad the way that Leif is sad.” Then she walked away, guards were about to barr her way but Mariccle signaled for them to let her through.

“Your highness forgive her. She isn’t completely well.” Leif said, feeling panic rise within himself once more.

“Your parents are dead?” Mariccle said, which Leif was surprised by. “I must express my condolences. I have only just recently lost my own dear father, and I imagine it must have been as painful for you as it was painful for me.”

Leif shook his head, he felt surprisingly young before Mariccle. “I lost them when I was young.” 

He almost wanted to cry. He was embarrassed to feel like this before a man he had heard was so extraordinary and swallowed back the sorrow. “Please let me fight for you, your highness.”

Mariccle looked at Leif and nodded his assent. His spear which had been taken and was very obviously of a style most common in Grannvale was returned to him.

\---

“Have someone watch him.” A bushy bearded officer said to Mariccle. “He might be a spy, your highness.”

Mariccle sighed. “Brennus, there are boys a dime a dozen with stories like that.” Mariccle looked at his hands and stretched the fingers. “He seems smart. He knows that there isn’t trouble in Verdane, and so he guessed that maybe Shannan was taken there to keep him safe. Ayra never told us where she’d take Shannan, so I can’t know for certain whether he knows anything or not, but he probably doesn’t. I could tell he was holding something back at first. He probably did something bad in Grannvale and so he came here because he didn’t want to face the law.”

“Which is why we should have someone watch him, your highness.” Brennus replied. 

“Just have the officer he’s assigned to watch over him.” Mariccle said. “No reason to do more than that.”

Brennus assented.

\---

Leif was shown to a tent with some bunkmates and Sara was shown to a tent with healing women where she would assist them. Leif felt relaxed. In the middle of an army as a minor footsoldier he could disappear and think about what he could do. On the one hand, if he gained prominence on the battlefield he could persuade Mariccle to perhaps make different military decisions, on the other hand, if he was highly visible he might be regarded more carefully and more suspiciously and be slain.

Leif was introduced to the men who he would be fighting alongside. It was a unit of five men including Leif, Leif was replacing a man who’d fallen in a skirmish the other day. The men judged him with wary eyes which was unsurprising. He’d have to prove himself to get along with these men. He still had a good amount of food and water and he shared it among himself and the other four men who warmed to him on his offer. It seemed that the food supply situation was not good. 

The men would not be familiar with what can be foraged here or in the desert, and supplies brought through the Aed Desert would take a long time to reach the frontlines. Leif thought to himself. We should frankly retreat and force the enemy to cross the long desert where our supply lines are short and the enemy’s supply lines are long. 

Leif relayed his thoughts to his four companions as they ate. 

“What we think doesn’t really matter.” A man who’d introduced himself as Rudra and was the leader of the group said. “I’d of course rather be at home than here, but what can you do? If the Prince wants to fight here then the prince wants to fight here.”

“I was drafted.” A smaller man who was called Aarav complained. “I didn’t want to come either.”

The morale is not good in this army. Leif thought to himself. Their King has just died and now their Prince is sending them on a long campaign far from home.

“If there was some way we could convince the Prince to turn around, we might stand a fighting chance.” Leif said. “We should try and persuade some officers of what we think.”

“They’ll whip you and worse.” A thin man who was named Arjun and who clearly didn’t eat enough said, his mouth full. “It’s better to find a time to slip away instead of that.”

“I don’t want to hear that!” A man named Kabir shouted. “You all better not really be thinking of running! Our King has been slain! Now we must go with our Prince to avenge the King’s death! Don’t you all remember how good our king was? How low the taxes were?”

The true believer in the fight. Leif thought to himself. 

“The taxes were low. Until the King died and his brat raised the taxes to go to war.” Arjun guffawed and spat bread from his mouth. “And then in order to have enough men to fight crimes that weren’t crimes before became crimes so that he’d have men to fight. Even people who’d already fulfilled their required service as laborers”

Then in a chorus all of the men except for Leif himself and Kabir said jeeringly “If you fight, your charges will be cleared and you’ll be free men! If you fight and we win you can go back home!”

Raucous laughter broke out among the men and Leif was dismayed. He’d gone among his own men as leader of the Liberation Army, fought alongside them and spoke to them personally. He never noticed this kind of disdain for the fight among his own soldiers.

“Even if you all don’t want to fight.” Leif said loudly and the men stopped laughing to look at him. “Even if you all don’t want to fight. We should all promise to have each other’s backs.” And Leif held his hand out and in front of him to the men who were before him. “We should look out for each other and see that we can at least survive.”

There was an awkward silence, but then Rudra nodded his head and placed his hand upon Leif’s. The other men one by one did the same thing. 

“I have to check up on someone.” Leif said and got up to check on how Sara was doing, however, when he arrived where she was staying, he was barred from visiting her as he wasn’t sick and wasn’t visiting a patient.

\---

Leif passed the next several weeks in a kind of dull routine. He showed some spear and sword techniques to the other men in his group and they went around here and there talking with other men and finding out from which city this or that man was from and how the men liked to eat their dull rations in order to make it a little more satisfying. It was strangely comfortable, perhaps because Leif had been used to being in the military for a longtime. Leif visited Sara once in a while when he had free time and when she had free time, and sometimes she visited him. Naturally, the men in his unit asked him of their relationship and Leif decided to say that she was his sister, and perhaps Sara was in a playful mood because she didn’t say he was lying.

As this routine continued, the army of Grannvale was forming up, slowly, steadily, and moving forward like an immense glacier towards an army that was already facing supply problems before it had even really fought a major battle even once.

IV: Standoff of the Two Princes  
Prince Kurth arrived on the frontlines in the early morning and was informed of the situation by the men there. There were some military men who regarded his presence as a nuisance, but for the most part he was regarded as a man of dignity and capability by the officers of his army.

On the other side of the battlefield, Mariccle was getting troubling reports that the morale of the army was extremely low. While he’d gone on a rather suicidal move towards the frontlines out of sorrow for his father’s death, he was beginning to think that maybe he should reconsider. Brennus had the man called Rudra watch Leif, but Rudra instead of merely reporting on Leif reported the state of the military’s lowest ranks, the total disdain for this military adventure that was felt by many of the men. He’d actually planned to fight much earlier than this, but the reports had given him pause.

Furthermore, the women were saying that he, Prince Mariccle had gone and sent his army forward to die alongside him. Throughout the army, there were murmurs that their chances of victory were low and had little chance of success and that Prince Mariccle was going to let them all die out of grief for his father. Prince Mariccle hadn’t really considered the ordinary soldiers in his plans, now he was filled with embarrassment at his decision. 

In the end, Mariccle made the decision to retreat. He ordered Brennus to select suitable men for a rearguard and his men began preparations to quietly slip back across the Aed Desert. Mariccle hoped for at least one victory before moving back home to punish the enemy, even if it was in the form of a heroic rearguard action.

“We have news that Verdane has invaded Grannvale, your royal highness.” Brennus reported Prince Mariccle who was deep in thought.

“Thank you General Brennus.” Prince Mariccle replied. Retreating was the right move. If they’ve depleted their forces in the southwest and diverted them all to the northeast to attack Isaach, then they’ve sent even more at us than I thought.

“How long do you believe the rearguard can hold?” Prince Mariccle asked Brennus. 

Brennus smiled. “As long as I stand.”

\---

“We’re retreating?” Leif asked the question with barely hidden disbeLeif and delight. “We’re going to Isaach?”

“Yes.” Rudra said. “Just like you wanted we’re going back. Only, there’s to be a rearguard and we’re part of it.”

That’s fine. Leif thought to himself. Isaach can hold if it uses the desert to its advantage.

Leif frowned. He didn’t know if his being there had affected history at all. He turned his thoughts to how perhaps, it might have been better to join Grannvale, and try to assassinate Arvis before any of this, but Leif brushed that aside, he never would have been able to get that close to Arvis. Mariccle had only spoken to him for a short time before making him into a common footsoldier. He wondered if Sara might have spread the rumor among the women in the camp that Mariccle was not planning on winning, and he wondered if that had something to do with the retreat.

Before long, it was time for the armies to clash.

\---

Leif was no stranger to an uneven fight, an unfair fight, or a fight where he was outnumbered. However, the forces thrown at him and the other men besides him were overwhelming. He performed well and impressed the people around him, but the Isaachian lines were wavering before too long, and Leif was surprised at how exhausted he already was. 

Then a horn sounded which Leif knew meant “retreat” to the Isaachians and he and the other soldiers around him flew in the direction the enemy wasn’t coming from. Men with ebon shields and heavy armor moved forward led by Brennus. Leif and the others passed in between these men, who closed ranks before making contact with the enemy.

The Isaachian soldiers in that heavy armor began killing the men who Leif had been having some trouble with like they were killing children, and they were soon afraid to fight and unwilling to move despite the goading of officers. There was the sound of a trumpet that Leif knew meant that cavalry were coming and the ebon armored Isaachian elite formed squares with archers in the center. The archers began to fire at the horses and their riders and the horses were barely able to harm the squares which had been formed so skillfully by Brennus’s elite soldiers.

Leif knew that the enemy would soon send mages forward to cut through the armored men. Brennus would have known it too. The squares began to retreat backwards and the formations opened up to allow the men within to leave the squares and retreat into the desert. 

The loss of these men will be a serious problem for Isaach. Leif thought with some dismay even as he himself ran from the front. Those were soldiers with low mobility, and despite their skill, it was likely that they would find certain death as the rearguard.

\---

Brennus was true to his lord and managed to hold the enemy off and inflict high casualties on them. The main army and large portions of the rear guard were able to safely retreat deep into the desert. By the time that the army of Grannvale had recovered from its exhaustion fighting with Brennus and his men who now lay dead in the sand, the main army of Isaach had become long out of their reach.

The other portions of the rearguard were a different story. They were under the command of a deputy of General Brennus, General Cian. They retreated in good order for the most part, but with much slower speed than the main army considering they’d been the rearguard and had been exhausted by fighting for a long while. 

Leif didn’t see any of the other men who had been a part of his unit and he hadn’t seen them for the past few days. 

I said we should look out for each other, but in the confusion of battle, I lost them within a few minutes of fighting. Leif almost wanted to laugh at how worthless his words had been. In the end, it was all nonsense. 

Behind the surviving members of the rearguard, mages carrying tomes of fire magic were being gathered to shave off all of the men that they could. Arvis had arrived at the capital of Grannvale, Belhalla after delivering a silver sword to Sigurd who was defending Grannvale against the Verdanian invasion, and he’d lent some fire mages and sages for the purpose of assisting the army assaulting Isaach.

Meteors began to rain down upon General Cian’s forces, and the man began to panic. Meteor Tomes are costly, but they were costly because of their great power. Leif was simply lucky and able to avoid being hit by any of the attacks by simply being further ahead and not near the rear where the Meteors were able to reach. The meteors didn’t kill too many men, but it did cause the group to scatter and fall apart. Men would starve to death or die of dehydration in the desert, that couldn’t be avoided for some of these men at least.

\---

It would be several weeks later before the remainder of the rearguard caught up with the main body of the Isaachian military in pieces here and there, some men were left behind or had deserted in the Aed desert where they probably met their death. General Cian was an observant man, and was able to identify who performed well and who performed poorly among the rearguard, among the men who performed well was Leif. The surviving members of the rearguard were all rewarded as a group with wine and meat cooked over fires, although it seemed that a few men had lost their nerves after experiencing the storm of meteors sent by the knights of Velthomer. 

The Isaachian army had undergone a harsh march across the desert back to Isaach, but as they had marched across the desert within striking distance of Belhalla and now marched back, they were more aware of the lay of the land than the majority of the forces of Grannvale. Grannvale had many maps of supposed safe routes and locations that could be crossed over the desert, but their maps were in fact quite outdated and locations where water was believed to be were in dried out, and locations where water was the forces of Grannvale in truth had no idea.

Mariccle had tempered the sorrow that had sent him nearly suicidally on a frontal assault against an enemy that outnumbered in quality and quantity. He would use the unique abilities of the men and women of Isaach for his war, and he planned to make Grannvale bleed out slowly rather than have Isaach’s royal army be destroyed in a magnificent blaze of glory as he’d initially intended. For this purpose, Mariccle created a force of picked men who knew the desert and giving them gold and food and other useful supplies, promised them further rewards, sending them under the command of General Grainne, a woman who was skilled with archery and sword fighting, quick on her feet and able to find men and women with skills like her own.  
The army of Grannvale wasn’t foolish, it sent its men into the desert with long supply lines and with groups to forage, they found and attempted to torture information out of Isaachians who’d been lost or otherwise deserted, and they attempted to use local people in the Aed Desert as guides for their armies. However, the people of the desert slipped away over the dunes and the columns of the great armies of Grannvale soon found themselves struggling to move forward.

General Grainne poisoned water sources in the desert which further slowed the movement of the armies of Grannvale and they soon had no choice but to come to a halt for a period of time. Arvis was called in from the capital to solve the problem and he did so with a move that would change history. 

Arvis had grand canals built from the greener lands near Belhalla to the desert, as well as from the sea through the desert. This allowed for the transport of large amounts of supplies through the desert and the movement of freshwater in the case of the Belhalla-Aed canal. At this point, General Grainne was not able to do serious harm to the main armies of Grannvale and moved to rejoin Mariccle who was building up defenses on the border of Isaach and the desert and working to improve the morale of his men. He even began to have the land near these fortresses worked and farmed by his men and had their families moved to the area, settling in for a fight that would be long and arduous. 

News came that Sigurd had successfully crushed Verdane despite his great disadvantage in numbers compared to them, however, Mariccle also received word by a courier Sigurd had paid that Shannan and Ayra were both safe and under his protection, and that furthermore, Sigurd had decided to keep Shannan and Ayra hidden from the other members of the Grannvale nobility who had not personally joined him.

Mariccle did not know what Sigurd’s reason might have been for this as he did not personally know Sigurd, he did feel gladdened however to know that Ayra and Shannan were safe. He also recalled a conversation he’d had with a young man who claimed that Ayra and Shannan would find themselves in Verdane.

V: The Grass and Sand  
At the edges of the desert or grass depending on where you stand, Leif and Sara had been given land to work. Leif had also learned that Rudra and the others who he’d met had been safe. Because of his superior performance he’d been assigned to fight under a different officer. Leif wanted to in some way maintain his secrecy, he’d in fact learned a little of farming from some of his other mentors, but that was in soil far to the south.

“We can’t help you.” Rudra said when Leif asked him for advice in farming the land there. “We don’t usually try to farm land which is so near to the sands, although Mariccle is giving out land to all of us to keep us here. We don’t know much about farming here.”

Leif understood. The men would eventually grow tired and want to return home, but by giving land out to men which they could watch over as a reward for fighting in the armor, Mariccle had tied a defense force to the land near the border. Both sides were engaging in massed corvee labor to build up their ability to wage war in various ways, Arvis mustered a massive force as a support for the main army, and used those corvee laborers for moving supplies and maintaining the grand canals that he’d built.

In truth, Mariccle was hoping for a long period of time to prepare for war, he was determined to fight to the last totally and completely at that point. Arvis and Grannvale had no ability to fight for an extended duration of time given the supply situation. Mariccle had hoped to extend the period of the enemy’s preparation time for the invasion and sent Grainne into the desert with a reinforced force and more capable picked men several times and she’d been successful many times, but she’d been badly beaten by a plot of Arvis and Mariccle decided to avoid having his forces sent out for any more attacks in the desert.

Research by Mariccle to plant crops in the land near to the desert was showing some promise, but as a precaution, land had also been given to people further away in case the soil didn’t allow plants to be grown near to the desert, land was also reserved to give to men who were offered land near the desert only to find nothing could grow, but it seemed that men were yielding techniques and methods to successfully work the land. One issue though, was that men wanted to keep their farming methods to themselves rather than share with others. Mariccle had some scholars examine how to properly work the land and when methods were found, had almanacs and other materials produced to illustrate for the soldier-farmers how to work the land.

Mariccle had asked Leif how he knew about Shannan and Ayra and where they’d go, Leif was cagey however and gave answers that were somewhat vague. Still, Mariccle decided to trust that the young man and the strange young girl beside him had no bad intentions.

\---

Sara taught Leif a few things here and there involving magic though he didn’t learn to grasp it as well as her. She taught Leif how to use staves and Light magic, she even knew some of the theories on other forms of magic like Dark magic, although Leif didn’t wish to learn it. Leif was pleased to have some more skills, and he’d even figured out a few things about farming. Sara was actually able to discern a few things about how the land should be worked herself in spite of the fact that she was not exactly willing to work the land herself. Still, Leif was glad for her presence and she’d earned her keep in teaching him magic and staves as far as Leif was concerned. Sara had gained a sort of following. She seemed able to sense people’s inner thoughts and could speak of what their concerns were, she was skilled in healing with and without a stave, something she’d gained after working as a nurse. Healing Staves were expensive and hard to come by for the ordinary people, and a healer willing to help for free was a valuable member of the community.

Seasons passed and it was time for the harvest. News that Sigurd of Chalpy had decided to reinforce Lachesis and her personal army as a result of political matters within Augustria reached the Isaachians in the year of 758 of the Grann Calendar. Leif knew the outcome of the battle. He knew that it would benefit Grannvale, but at least for now, Isaach and Grannvale were in a hard stalemate.

\---

Arvis was facing difficulties. The other generals and commanders were screaming for an attack, at the capitol the Dukes Reptor and Lombard were also arguing for a quicker war, and despite the fact that he was one of the right hand men of the leader of Grannvale, it didn’t change that he’d refused them any chance at glory in order to build canals in order to ensure that the armies would be supplied crossing the desert. The rank and file were also becoming frustrated by the protracted war.

If Isaach’s Prince had simply faced us head on as we expected. We would have easily destroyed him. Arvis thought to himself. Yet he instead chose to march forward, sacrifice some men, and then march back across the desert.

Arvis decided to leave the battle solely in the hands of Prince Kurth. He would return to the capital. While Kurth would have difficulties without support from Arvis, his skill was more than worthy of ensuring victory. Arvis had plans of his own that would be easier to formulate without Kurth’s watchful eyes.

VI: Kurth’s Advance  
Prince Kurth, Duke Ring, and Duke Byron were standing around a table examining a map late into the night. While the retreat of the Isaachian forces and their poisoning of water sources in the desert had been a source of trouble, for the most part, the great army of Grannvale remained intact and its capabilities unhindered. This was a map that Prince Kurth had made with the assistance of Duke Ring and Duke Byron, as the other maps were no good and were completely outdated. The war had already cost them immensely in terms of monies even if it hadn’t cost them much in terms of blood. Prince Kurth knew that it would have to be either wrapped up quickly, or they would at least have to gain a victory soon. 

“We’ll probe them for weaknesses over the next several weeks.” Kurth said. “Mariccle has men working the land, so their supply lines are practically non-existent, they have grain to last them for several months, and they can safely hide within their fortresses even if we destroy the farmland.”

“These fortresses will be a problem. Prince Mariccle has built a total of three fortresses and over twenty fortified towns. They have control of the nearby water supplies while we have to carry ours over the desert from our canals.” Duke Ring noted, pointing to the location of the different features he’d noted. “On first appearances, this area here looks like the softest area, but in truth, some of the scouts who fought with the enemy report that many of the soldiers there are actually some of the best men. The area appears vulnerable but is difficult to attack.”

“We should try and reach these woods, it will allow us to cut timber for siege engines and make destroying the enemy fortresses easier. We’d also have a closer supply of water, and we could forage for food there as well.” Kurth said. “We’ll move into these woods.”

Early the next day, Kurth sent a force of picked men into the woods. Men with axes for felling trees, men with shields and bows, men who were good at moving silently through the woods. There was some light fighting which the forces of the Isaachians got the better position and dealt more casualties than they received, but the forces of Grannvale did not have too many issues with moving into the woods and cutting down trees for timber.

Siege Engines were not constructed just yet, rather the timber was all carried from its origin to be aimed at the fortress which was the furthest from the other two. In addition, mages and archers began to attack fortified towns from a distance. Archers within fired back, but the towns were eventually abandoned by the Isaachians. Kurth was able to report a victory to the capital and his men’s morale was restored.

Kurth sent out several weak attacks over the next several weeks, carefully probing. The Isaachians performed well in battle, but did not cause overmuch trouble for the soldiers of Grannvale. The men who’d been granted land like Leif had already gone into fortified towns. Leif had never learned how to use bows or crossbows, but he was getting a lesson in it now. 

Later that night, Kurth and his advisors examined the battle situation.

“We should have taken these seven fortified towns.” Kurth said. “This leaves the northern flank of the three fortresses open, we can place our siege engines there without worrying about night attacks destroying them, we’ll move the timber and begin constructing them early in the morning.”

“Actually your royal highness.” Duke Byron coughed to get the Prince’s attention. “We’ve taken five towns. Two of them have still resisted us. We could not take them.”

Kurth frowned. “How did they manage to do so?”

“The attacks were not properly coordinated.” Duke Byron pointed to the northmost town. “This is the town where we believed that the picked men of Mariccle’s force would be. We sent extra men to take it, but in fact they beat our men back easily, and they then wheeled around to assist this other fortified town to the southeast of it. The soldier within and without the fortified town there pincered and destroyed our forces there.”

“Who was the commander of those soldiers?” Kurth asked. 

“We don’t have that information.” Duke Byron said. “We have men being interrogated now.”

“No torture.” Prince Kurth said.

“Never.” Replied Duke Byron. 

Kurth examined the map. A larger force could hold down the small fortified town, even if it was filled with extremely capable men, quantity had a quality all its own. Kurth would use the power of numbers to destroy that linchpin of Mariccle’s force.

\---

Leif had been placed in command of the fortified town’s forces after the commander who’d gotten to know him while they were building the walls gained a respect and fondness for the young man. That old commander’s name was Tu, he was bedridden, but not dead. Healing spells removed his physical wounds, but it seemed that he’d also gained an illness as a result of his wounds that even the talents of a person like Sara could not fix. 

Leif had expected the men of the fortified town without a name beyond a numerical designation of one to disrespect him or be wary of his commands because of his youth. Instead, they were quite fine with him, perhaps because they’d fought alongside him. It wasn’t age, but how much blood he’d seen that they were concerned with.

Leif’s decision to wheel around to fortify the other fortress was a good one, but a method that would only work once. Leif placed a deputy in charge and in the middle of the night, slipped onto a horse to visit the leader of the other fortified town while Prince Kurth was speaking with his officers.

His fellow officer greeted him with open arms and thanked him for rescuing them earlier in the day. His name was Du. He was from some small tribe in Isaach that few knew the name of and which Tu had also been a part of. Du warmed some wine and spoke with Leif.

“What brings you here sir.” Du said with a smile, handing Leif the warmed wine.

“As you know, in battle, it's unlikely for the same opponent to fall for the same trick twice.” Leif said. “The reason that we could pincer the enemy is because the enemy didn’t send enough men to attack Town One. So we were able to reinforce your Town Three easily. We have to formulate a plan to survive the attack that will come.”

Du nodded his head. He wasn’t as well versed in strategy as this young man seemed to be. He could inspire men to fight with their lives on the line, but strategy was not his forte, nor was tactics. He simply said HOLD, and the men held. “What do you propose?” he asked Leif.

Leif smiled. “I had a mentor who taught me about various tactics and strategies. If something cannot be held, it should be abandoned. and it should be abandoned in such a way that it won’t do any good for the enemy.”

Du smiled. “That sounds wise indeed.”

Leif stopped smiling. “We should burn this town.”

Du stopped smiling as well. “Burn the town!” He jumped up. “I’ve been tasked with defending this town! How can I burn it?”

Leif bent his head and held out his hand as to indicate to Du that he should let Leif speak. “Our job is to protect Isaach. Prince Mariccle hasn’t the men to spare to reinforce your town, and it was built weaker and with less men to start with than Town One.”

Du frowned. “So what do you propose.” He was obviously angry.

Leif pointed to a map on the wall. He placed his finger on Town Three, and dragged it to Town One. 

Du was confused for a few moments, then understood. “You mean to move all the soldiers in our town to yours.”

Leif nodded his head. “We must do it all tonight, and we must do it quickly.”

Du frowned in response.

What was Du’s decision? Read on.

VII: The One Night Fortress  
The approach of winter was beckoned by howling wind and a layer of ice that appeared on the waters that flowed from the distant mountains into forests nearby. Town Three was empty of men by morning, and the gates had been flung open. The battle was across a wide front, so when Grannvale’s army approached the city with open gates, they were at first wondering if there was a trap. They struck the town with magic and arrows and there was no response. A town so fiercely defended being completely emptied was surprising. This was reported to Prince Kurth, who ordered that the town be entered on account of the fact that it was not unusual for the enemy to choose to abandon a position that was frankly indefensible at that point with no possibility of reinforcements. Prince Kurth was correct in that assessment. He however, assumed that they’d been sent to the nearby fortress and not to where they actually in fact were. Prince Kurth also had the matter of looking over other areas of the battlefield.

The attack on Town One began once again in earnest. The men in the town fought well, and were even fiercer than they had been in the past. The soldiers of Grannvale were not expecting this, and they balked at this attack. It was decided by the officers of Grannvale that instead they should settle into a siege of Town One rather than give in to impatience. Town One was near to water and the forest, and the army could obtain fresh water after breaking the ice later that week.

That night, a force of picked men stepped over the still frozen river. It consisted of men from Leif and Du’s force, as well as rangers in the forests who decided to support Leif’s attack. The camps of the men besieging the fortified town were violently attacked by men crossing the frozen river which they did not expect, and they did not realize could be stepped on, for they did not know the depth of the river or the thickness of the ice, and the men within the town hearing the noise, rushed out to once again pincer the enemy. With the forces of the rangers and the two towns, the differential in numbers was not so insurmountable, and the groggy Grannvale men fell into a panicked retreat and tramped their other comrades who were better able to sleep with loud sound in the middle of the night. 

At the moment that the news was reported. Prince Kurth had been informed of successful capture of all the other fortified towns except for Town One. Prince Kurth frowned at the news. He’d already had to send more men than he’d wanted to deal with Town One, and now he’d have to send more. It would make the attacks on the three fortresses more difficult. In truth, Town One had been built into a place where an underground cavern could be carved. Mariccle chose this place because it could hide more men than one might expect as well as more supplies than one might expect.

Still, the attacks were becoming more difficult for Leif and his companions to hold. Leif thought of August, Dorias, Eyvel and Finn and wondered what advice they’d give. He imagined it in his head. He spoke with Du and Tu who had now recovered and was in command once again about what they should all do. They were unsure and Leif decided to to look for unorthodox solutions.

He considered asking the men and women, but decided that a deputy of the commander asking such questions might cause fear or panic. 

As he was having these difficulties, Sara walked down the hall and smiled at him, sighing. “Alright, I’ll help you.”

Leif frowned. “What?”

“Build a Sand Castle near the water.” And then she slipped away.

Leif smiled, and decided to go out and wet his hands and build a sand castle. 

\---

The next morning, Prince Kurth decided to go and see to the troubles with Town One by himself. He took a force of picked men and went to inspect the area himself. He frowned at the great sight before him.

“Why was I not informed of the size of Town One? And it’s not a town, it’s a fortress.” Prince Kurth said, turning to Duke Byron and Duke Ring.

Duke Byron and Duke Ring frowned. “It wasn’t this large your highness.”

Prince Kurth looked at the castle for a little while, and then he smiled. “They built a sand castle.” He walked over to where the sand and grass met and dug his hands into the sand. “They used the water of the nearby river and built a sand castle. Town One was a problem partly because while it was there and while those rangers were in the woods we wouldn’t be able to get water easily from the river and had to transport it from far away.” 

Prince Kurth let the sand in his hands drop. “We might have to change our focus to attacking and destroying this fortress first. You two think of what can be done.”

Duke Byron and Duke Ring nodded their heads and showed their assent to the command. Prince Kurth was also thinking of how to overcome the walls which had risen overnight. There were even smaller walls that followed the length of the river to the forest on the west side which led to the forest, constructed by the rangers with great speed after Leif had informed the rangers in the forest while Tu and Du built the fortress around Town One.

The enemy commander is skilled. Prince Kurth thought to himself. They use the seasons and weather, the unique terrain, and the environment to their advantage, their men fight well and are not afraid. This battle could last a long time if the enemy uses the same method to build several more fortresses now that it’s winter.

A different scheme would have to be used.

What was Prince Kurth’s scheme? Read on.


	2. CHVIII - CHXIV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Factions clash within and without Grannvale.

VIII: Crusaders Meet  
The beginning of the year of 759 saw news that Sigurd of Chalpy had completely seized control of Augustria following aggression from King Chagall the previous year. Leif frowned and wondered if history had really changed at all other than Sigurd capturing Augustria much faster than he had historically, this was the year that Isaach fell historically. Although in the history that Leif knew, Mariccle had crossed the desert and lived off the land of Grannvale for a while and achieved great success for a period of time before being slain during a decisive and ruinous battle which saw Prince Kurth achieve a grand victory. The remnants surrendered soon after and cities fell one by one under the command of Grannvale. The broad strokes of history were still the same. The fortified towns except for one were destroyed, and if even one of the three fortresses were destroyed, it was over. Mariccle was still a courageous warrior, and he risked his life often slaying large numbers of enemies.

Mariccle had become aware of Leif’s role and was impressed by him and summoned him as a result to speak with him and learn the truth of why Leif was part of his army. 

“You will tell me why you decided to join Isaach despite not being a man of Isaach.” Mariccle commanded.

“The truth of the matter, your highness.” Leif responded. “Is that before I came here, some Grannvalian men were recruiting travelers to join the army of Grannvale, and I did not wish to join them, and I murdered one man and injured several more when they tried to force me.”

Mariccle smiled. “And now you have no choice but to join my army because you killed that one man and injured those others.”

Leif frowned. “Yes, your highness.”

There was a murmur from some of the other officers present. It was obvious that such a person might not be the best to have on their side no matter what their ability might be. Prince Mariccle however, seemed undeterred in allowing Leif to be there and offered him a reward for successfully holding Town One. Leif had it distributed to the soldiers now under his command in the name of Prince Mariccle and this further pleased his liege.

The northmost Town One now the Fortress of Ice and Sand was not practical for Prince Kurth and his forces to attack, however, now that he had destroyed all the other towns, he could consolidate his forces for full attacks on the three great fortresses that had been constructed by Mariccle at the border. Before this attack however, he sent arrows with written messages to the southmost of the three fortresses.

The message within read thus: I know that Prince Mariccle has distributed the land of some of you men among the common peasantry and ordinary soldiers and this has led to much outrage within your ranks though you hide it before Prince Mariccle. If you should join me, I will return to you what was taken from you and I will further grant you serfs from the men who were given land by Prince Mariccle. 

This message penned by Duke Ring at the request of Prince Kurth, was a message meant for the mid-ranking officers of noble birth who resented that land had been distributed to ordinary men who fought well earlier on in the war. These men were in their position because they could read and write and as a result of birth rather than by natural ability for the most part. Men like Tu, Du, and Leif were an eyesore for them especially for rising through the ranks so rapidly. Still, this message was not enough for the men to change their flags so easily. 

Prince Mariccle was made aware of the messages and he began to quietly change the positions of various men and women in his army, this did not go unnoticed, and some officers of noble rank would begin to see the value in defecting to the other side.

\---

Prince Kurth sent a message of a similar nature to all of the fortresses, and Leif was given a formal invitation for a meeting with Prince Kurth. Leif wondered if he should go or not, but justified his going to the other two commanders on the basis that he needed to go in order to “buy time”. Leif wondered if he should try and join Prince Kurth in order to change Grannvale internally, but felt uneasy at the thought of abandoning the soldiers who were his responsibility.

Prince Kurth was a man of dignity who looked several years younger than he really was. He greeted Leif with great courtesy. “You fight well sir.” He said with a smile. “I am not aware that you were so young. What is your name?”

Leif smiled and responded graciously. “I am Leif your royal highness. May I inquire as to the purpose of your visit?” 

Prince Kurth smiled. “I would like you to join Grannvale. We can offer you greater rewards than Isaach ever could.”

Leif stopped smiling. “I am afraid I cannot accept your offer, I have been given responsibilities and rewards by my prince that don’t permit me to be ungrateful. Still, your offer is truly kind, and I would like to offer you advice for your offering of such a reward your royal highness.”

“Please dispense your advice young sir.” Prince Kurth replied graciously. 

“You should not return to the Capital.” Leif said. “Duke Reptor and Duke Lombard are planning to assassinate you as soon as you return from this campaign. Your victory will be followed by defeat, and the collapse of Grannvale.” As Leif said this, he was wondering whether he should report on Arvis or not, but was unsure if Prince Kurth would believe it.

Prince Kurth stopped smiling for a few seconds. “I will keep your advice in mind.” 

Leif and Prince Kurth exchanged customary goodbyes and Prince Kurth departed with something to think about. Meanwhile, Leif told Tu and Du of what he said and a report was written to send to Prince Mariccle.

Prince Mariccle upon hearing of this smiled at the ingenuity of the young Leif. He decided to borrow his enemies scheme and spread rumors of his own. Leif might have just made up a story, but rumors can kill as they say.

\---

“Your royal highness, there is something we must discuss.” Duke Byron entered Prince Kurth’s tent carrying a message. “There are rumors being sent all around camp that Duke Reptor and Duke Lombard will cut off supplies from the capital. They have the means to do so.”

“My father would not allow it.” Prince Kurth frowned.

“What the King will and will not permit and what Duke Reptor and Duke Lombard will do if they wish to are another matter entirely.” Duke Ring said. “As of now, the men, especially the officers, are in a panic about being cut off from supplies.”

“Arvis’s subordinates are in charge of managing the canals and wagons.” Prince Kurth said in response, but he frowned. Isaach didn’t seem to have good spies from what he knew, yet Leif and Prince Mariccle apparently knew of some of the internal situation in Grannvale. While Prince Kurth did not hold ill will towards Duke Reptor and Lombard, Duke Byron and Duke Ring did not get along well with them and Prince Kurth had absorbed some of their personal distaste for the two men.

“Can the men fight?” Prince Kurth asked of Duke Byron. “Can they fight?”

Duke Byron frowned. “They men can fight, but the officers and knights of noble origin are feeling uneasy.”

Prince Kurth sighed. Those were the highest quality men that he had, but they were feeling uneasy as a result of a rumor that had grounding in truth. While Duke Arvis’s subordinates were in charge of the supplies that could change at any moment on a whim of Duke Reptor and Duke Lombard. Spies meanwhile, were reporting the development of these rumors to those very same men.

\--- In Belhalla ---

“So Prince Kurth is spreading rumors that we mean to cut off his supplies?” Duke Lombard smirked. “His excuses will be his downfall.”

“The spies say that it was the scheme of Prince Mariccle and a young subordinate of his named Leif, not Prince Kurth.” Duke Reptor swirled a cup of wine made of silver. “Or rather, that’s what Prince Kurth is telling his men.”

“He’s trying to pretend like isn’t the one spreading those rumors?” Duke Reptor scoffed. “We’ll lose political power if that brat takes the throne. We should make a request of his majesty.”

King Azmar was extremely ill and rather old at that time, so a sudden late night visit was quite difficult for him, and yet, it must have been important, so he was dressed while the Dukes waited and he called them in.

“Forgive us for waking you at this hour your majesty.” The Dukes greeted their King.

“It must be important, it must be important.” King Azmar said, having trouble wiping the sleep from his blurry eyes. “Please tell me what it is.”

“There are rumors in Prince Kurth’s ranks that we intend to cut him off from his supplies.” Duke Reptor said. “It seems that the officers are reluctant to fight as a result.”

“Prince Kurth might be making common cause with Isaach, your majesty.” Duke Lombard said. 

“Not Prince Kurth, not Prince Kurth.” The old man said. “He would never do that.”

“Even a tiger won’t eat its cubs as the saying goes.” Duke Lombard replied. “But children don’t always feel the same way.”

“It might not be Prince Kurth who wishes to rebel, but his officers.” Duke Reptor interrupted Duke Lombard. “Prince Kurth has no intention of rebelling, of that I’m certain, but his men, Duke Ring and Duke Byron, they might be worthy of investigation.”

The old man nodded his head in assent to their request. “Prince Kurth would never, Prince Kurth would never”, and then he laid his head down upon his pillow and fell into a dreamless sleep. 

The old man’s approval was given, so the two dukes hatched their scheme together. A few weeks later, a message would come to the frontlines from Belhalla.

\--- On the Frontlines once more ---

“There is an order from Duke Reptor and Duke Lombard acting on behalf of his majesty that Duke Byron and Duke Ring return to the capitol.” Prince Kurth said, frowning at the news. “We could make an excuse in order to delay it, we are very close to victory.”

Duke Ring frowned. “Don’t joke about disobeying an order from the capitol your royal highness.” 

Prince Kurth smiled. “Of course not, but I would hate to have you two leave me. Take your knights with you, I want you both to be safe on the road. Be careful.”

Duke Ring and Duke Byron nodded in assent. 

As the two Dukes and their knights began marching towards the capitol, Prince Kurth and Prince Mariccle were both wondering how they should persecute the war. Prince Kurth still had a numerical advantage, but he felt like he’d lost his wings with the loss of Duke Byron and Duke Ring. Prince Mariccle could sense that some of the men and women he’d moved around were beginning to feel resentment towards him much stronger than before, and while he’d moved them, he didn’t necessarily have people to replace them. It had been a mistake on his part to do so.

\--- In the Aed Desert ---

Duke Ring and Duke Reptor were marching through the desert, their knights had trouble moving through the sand. If they had been ambushed it would have been near impossible for them to fight back, luckily for them, the Isaachians didn’t have the ability to range the desert as they had at the beginning of the war. 

Duke Ring took the position at the front. If there was an ambush waiting for them, it would be in the form of enemies wielding magic and bows most likely, so mounted archers who could shoot and peel away were a good choice. 

They reached the canals finally after passing many trains of wagons bearing supplies and they and their men rode supply boats on the canals back to the capitol. The journey was not arduous and lasted only a few weeks. 

\---In Belhalla, the Velthomer Estate at the capitol---

“Duke Arvis, I have someone who I would very much like for you to meet.” The dark-cloaked man grinned in an ugly fashion, and Duke Arvis recoiled in his mind at the man.

“Manfroy, you should not be here. What if you were seen?” Duke Arvis glared menacingly. 

“You should meet her before I go.” Manfroy smiled. “You will like her very much.”

Her? Arvis was intrigued despite his dislike of Manfroy and decided to go and meet with this woman whom Manfroy wished to introduce her to. Manfroy opened a door and the sight of the woman before him enthralled Arvis. She on her part, had lost her memory as a result of wicked magic used by Manfroy, and she was like an infant bird imprinting on a parent and was entranced by Duke Arvis in turn. In short, it was like love at first sight.

Manfroy smiled at the two people before him and their eyes filled with love and lust. His plans were coming together. He held his warp staff and casting a spell, slipped away to parts unseen.

Arvis smiled and took the hands of the woman standing before him. They asked the questions that two people who are interested in each other ask each other. Their names, their parents, their past, what they wanted in the future, Deirdre apologized to many of Duke Arvis’s questions as she’d lost her memory and couldn’t answer them and Duke Arvis responded with a smile and explained that they’d find her past together, he’d learn it all for her. 

“Do you have anything to remember your mother by?” He asked of her.

And she smiled and took from a small box a circlet which she placed on her head.

Arvis spent the next several days and then weeks neglecting important affairs, there was also some news of Sigurd of Chalpy losing his wife that Arvis missed in his dalliance with Deirdre.  
This was interrupted by the arrival of a message from King Azmir. 

“His majesty requests that you urgently make your way to the palace for an important meeting.” 

Arvis was displeased at the parting, but as it was necessary given his position, he left for the palace after exchanging honeyed words with his new love.

Awaiting him were the two Dukes Reptor and Lombard with old King Azmir sitting on his throne weary and tired. Arvis exchanged the customary greetings with all that were present.

“Your majesty. What is the purpose of this meeting?” Arvis inquired.

“Arvis.” King Azmir sighed. “Would he really rebel?”

Arvis frowned. “Sigurd?”

King Azmir shook his wary head. “My son.”

Arvis of Velthomer was astonished that the old King had said such a thing. “I do not believe that he would betray you.”

King Azmir looked into Arvis’ eyes. “Then would other men betray me on my son’s behalf?”

Duke Arvis looked into the old man’s eyes, he thought of his lurking ambitions, and he replied. “Perhaps.”

King Azmir let out a groan. Duke Reptor and Duke Lombard urged him to be cautious with his health but the old man seemed exhausted.

“Why do you believe that someone intends to betray you, your majesty?” 

“The Knights of Chalpy and Yngvi are moving towards the capital hidden on boats after we requested Duke Ring and Duke Byron to come to the capital as a result of rumors that Prince Kurth would come into conflict with Duke Reptor and myself.” Said Duke Lombard.

Arvis frowned. “Summoning them might very well have been the cause of this problem. They might have believed they had no choice but to rebel.” Arvis had his plans on the matter of removing certain obstacles, but this was frankly all too soon and he needed more time.

“We must have the two dukes enter the city alone. The Gruenritter and Beigeritter are too strong to be allowed to enter the city.” Duke Lombard rumbled to his majesty. “Whether it was a mistake to have them called back at this time or not, if they have intention to rebel as a result of our requests to have them called back, what matters is that they are marching towards us with armies in full force.”

“It is worse than that.” Duke Reptor said. “I wished not to let this be known to your majesty.” He looked towards the old King. “But it was under the explicit orders of Prince Kurth that they return with their knights. Not just a few bodyguards, all of their knights.”

The old King trembled. A parent might not want to harm their child, but children might not feel the same way towards their parents.

“They’ll enter alone.” Duke Arvis said. “You need not be worried about that. I have a plan to prevent any sort of rebellion.” The royal army was in the hands of Prince Kurth along with many of the knights, leaving only smaller forces directly in the hands of vassals and within the capitol itself, the old King was afraid for this reason.

The old King’s trembling ceased. “What do you propose Duke Arvis?”

Duke Arvis smiled. “It’s simple, invite the extended families of Duke Byron and Duke Ring to the capitol. They should arrive quickly, many of the Gruenritter and Beigeritter have family among the lesser members of the families of Duke Byron and Duke Ring, they’d never rebel in that case. Even if they entered the city. It will appear to be nothing but a banquet and celebration, we may celebrate the triumphs of Sigurd in conquering both Augustria and Verdane and give Duke Byron honors for his son’s splendor.”

The old King nodded in assent. “Do so at once, so do at once.”

“There is another cause for celebration, your majesty, one that will also prevent Prince Kurth rebelling if he truly has the intent.”

The old King looked at Duke Arvis, eyes intent.

Arvis smiled and drew forth the circlet. “I fell in love with a woman whom I was introduced to. This circlet belonged to her. Take it in your hands, your majesty and feel it and examine it.” Arvis gave the circlet which Deirdre had given to him to the old King.

The old King began to shake once more, but this time from joy, tears dropped from his eyes. “This is Prince Kurth’s daughter. I would recognize this circlet anywhere.”

“Please give your consent to your granddaughter’s hand in marriage to me, your majesty.” Duke Arvis said.

The old King’s hands ran over the length of the circle, feeling the grooves and the cold metal, his heart warmed as he held it. He nodded his assent to Duke Arvis’ request.

Duke Lombard and Duke Reptor had less pleasure at this new turn, but they still congratulated both the King and the Duke of Velthomer, though in their hearts were a different set of emotions.

IX: The Banquet of Four Celebrations  
“Your families and other relatives barring your son have already arrived at the capitol Duke Byron.” The messenger said to Duke Byron who nodded his thanks at the news. The messenger looked then to the old Duke Ring. “Your family as well. Andrey is there though I’m sorry to say to search for your other family members has not gone as well.” Duke Ring thanked the messenger in turn.

The messenger looked up and down the clothing of the two men. Tattered and weather worn and beaten. The old men were the same. “You must improve your appearances. There is a banquet that his majesty wishes you to attend for multiple purposes. Firstly, you have done well in the campaign against Isaach, secondly, your son and his army have conquered both Verdane and Augustria after their outrageous aggression towards our kingdom, thirdly, the child of Prince Kurth has been found which is a cause for great celebration, and fourthly, the engagement of that child to Duke Arvis has been decided. This is a celebration that must be as grand and imposing as any, and while you two men might be impressive on the battlefield as you are now, what you wear to a banquet must be as you both understand, different.”

With that the two men thanked the messenger yet again and looked at each other and laughed.

“I suppose we were worried over nothing, Duke Ring.” Duke Byron said with a smile. “Still, this banquet will be expensive.”

Duke Ring sighed. “I don’t feel too happy about this, the treasury of Yngvi is rather low because of this war.”

Duke Byron laughed. “I’m sure that Duke Arvis was able to gather some money together.” Duke Byron smiled. “Maybe I’ll have to urge my son to lend me some money. He was always good at finding money.”

“Please lend me some Duke Byron.” Duke Ring chuckled. 

The two men laughed. Byron sighed. “I wish that I could see Sigurd and that you could see Edain. Alas, they have matters of administration in Augustria to take care of.”

Now in good spirits and much relieved that many of their concerns were not too great an issue, the two men and their knights in their swaying boats moving towards the capitol were in high spirits and feeling truly grand.

\---

“Prince Kurth is calling for a ceasefire for a period of time to exchange and bury the dead.” Prince Mariccle said to his advisors. A ceasefire helped them, but perhaps it was some kind of trick?

“A ceasefire gives us time to repair the defenses, we should take it.” General Cian said. “Even if it's a trick.”

Prince Mariccle nodded his assent. Still, he wondered why at that time that Prince Kurth had decided to do such a thing.

A meeting was arranged between the two great men. Prince Mariccle and Prince Kurth exchanged the customary greetings. A ceremony was held to honor the dead of both sides, and there was weeping among all but the coldest of the men. Prince Mariccle noted the absence of Duke Byron and Duke Ring, as well as the absence of Gruenritter and Beigenritter knights that usually were at their side and realized he’d been had. If he had attacked he would have obtained a decisive victory, but he’d agreed to a ceasefire, and such an accord could not be broken at that point. The men would not have the heart to do so during a time of mourning.

Well done Prince Kurth. Prince Mariccle thought to himself.

Prince Kurth on his part, was relieved that Prince Mariccle had not understood his scheme, but his mind was also thinking of a place across the desert, where people were also thinking and scheming against him.

“There is a matter on which I wish to speak with you about.” Prince Mariccle said.

“Might I inquire as to what it is?” Prince Kurth replied.

“It is on the matter of Rivough.” Prince Mariccle responded.

\---

Duke Byron and Duke Ring arrived at the capitol amidst all the scheming and were a little naive about it. The banquet would not be for a month and so there would be time to pen a request for monies from Duke Byron’s son and buy the necessary items like clothing and accessories. Duke Byron still had a little money on him however, and decided to look for things that he could purchase before the arrival of some timely financial assistance from his son.

Despite his ragged clothing torn from war, it was still obvious from his dignity and way of carrying himself that he was a man of importance and significance, and of course, his armor while ragged, was clearly expensive before it’d been ruined by some measure of war.

Duke Byron met some lesser members of his family and greeted them kindly, and they requested monies for the celebration and Duke Byron knew that he couldn’t let his family members look bad lent some to first a few, and then to other extended members of the family, and soon found himself lacking anything and only able to promise monies when his son’s assistance came. Duke Byron sighed. He’d have to reserve some purchases here and there with collateral at this rate.

He entered the Chalpy Estate empty handed and, taking a pen and paper, began to write a message to his son, which he had a servant send to his son who was in Augustria. It read thus: I and other members of the family have been invited to attend a banquet as a celebration of your victories in Verdane and Augustria, the success in the war in Isaach, the finding of Prince Kurth’s child, and the engagement of this child to Duke Arvis. I require funds on account of this banquet, both to assist the members of our family in having the proper appearance, and to assist the family of Duke Ring for the same purpose. As such, the amount of funds must be double whatever you think is necessary for a single family to attend such an important occasion.

He signed the letter, thanked his son, and hoped that his son would have the awareness to grant him a reasonable amount. He couldn’t help but to feel silly asking his son for money, but it simply couldn’t be helped. His son was generous, but Duke Byron was asking quite a lot of him. He’d feel quite sad if Duke Ring and his family looked badly while his own looked fabulous. 

The next day, Duke Byron went shopping with his seal at the ready for the creation of “I owe yous” which would be paid for by his son’s money. He went with a number of servants to a number of different shops and inquired about the local specialties, the fashions of the capitol, and so on and so forth.

“My lord! Those kinds of ornaments are out of date!” The merchant tut-tut-tutted. “These ornaments.” The merchant took out a series of items made of jade. “These pieces of jade were mined and then carved by expert craftsmen across the sea from a distant eastern land! The merchants in ports from the south compete for them and send the prices ever higher and higher!”

And send the treasury of Chalpy lower and lower. Duke Byron thought with a groan. “I don’t have the money on hand, but I can write a promise of later payment for the items.”

The merchant smiled. “That’s how many people pay in Belhalla, there will be interest of course!” He brought out papers which had information regarding the sale. Duke Byron took out his seal and took the pen in hand which the merchant had prepared with ink.

“That will not be necessary Duke Byron.” The familiar voice startled Duke Byron. He turned and exchanged the customary greetings with Duke Arvis.

“I own this shop.” Duke Arvis said with a smile. “Personal ornamentation? Clothing, you won’t have a problem. I hear you’ve written to your son asking for money. You won’t need it nor will Duke Ring. I’ve already written to Lord Sigurd regarding this. I will handle this affair personally. The engagement and debut of my own wife in high society is something I’d like to pay for with my own hands.”

Duke Byron thanked Duke Arvis and tried to persuade Duke Arvis to allow him to pay. Duke Arvis smiled. “If you refuse to allow me to offer you gifts, I will order every shop in the city of Belhalla with the goods that you require to forbid you and your family from entering. I dare say that you aren’t rude enough to force your way in, but I am rude enough to keep you out if you refuse a gift on my part given graciously.”

Duke Byron backed down and Arvis responded with a smile. The wealth and economic might of Duke Arvis was not something to frown at. Many lords and ladies would be in attendance, and Duke Arvis wanted everyone to look the part for his engagement. Not a single thing out of place for his own splendid celebration.

If he’s willing to go so far for the engagement, imagine the spending on the wedding. Duke Byron thought to himself with horror. He shuddered at the cost. 

“My son’s wife has gone missing. I wonder if perhaps you might also assist in the search using your financial power?” Duke Byron said.

Lord Arvis’ expression turned dark for a few seconds before he smiled and changed the topic. “I hear quite a number of amusing stories about your son Sigurd and his soldiers. I am told that Lord Lex wields an axe of incomparable strength and speed except for of course, in comparison Duke Lombard’s own axe, and this axe was given to him by a woman residing in a lake.”

Duke Byron and Duke Arvis laughed as the merchants began packaging the jade items, Duke Arvis’ servants had also begun to inform the different members of the Duke of Chalpy’s family to go to tailors who worked for Duke Arvis and have their clothing properly fitted. Duke Ring and his family had already long been informed by Duke Arvis before he’d been informed of the location of Duke Byron.

“It won’t just be members of Grannvale’s royal family and nobility.” Duke Arvis said with a smile. “You won’t be able to see your son given the importance of his tasks, but you may be able to see your daughter. Or if not your daughter, her father-in-law, who can at the very least tell you how she and your grandchildren are doing.”

Duke Byron smiled at the news and thanked Duke Arvis. After much friendly conversing, the two men parted ways.

Still, Duke Byron couldn’t help but be anxious about the front and Prince Kurth, there was also some part of him that worried that perhaps there were still risks of rebellion, but not from his family or Duke Ring’s.

Over the next several days dignitaries and representatives from the city states of the Miletos District and Manster District arrived. The King of Leonster, King Calf though still old, was a far more majestic figure than King Azmir, and the abundant wealth of the Manster District revealed itself in the most elegant and subtle ways on his person. The most simple but beautiful patterns woven into clothing of both his servants and himself. Ornaments which might seem dull at first glance but when he stood in the sun seemed to dance like fire. And of course, he was simply a man of great dignity and bearing. Though perhaps overtrusting.

Duke Byron and the King of Leonster exchanged the customary greetings and had a discussion about Ethlyn and the two men’s grandchildren. Duke Byron was gladdened by the conversation and eased at heart.

The splendid Lance Ritter deeply impressed Duke Byron, and he suggested that before the banquet, a tournament ought to be held that would display the splendor of the different knights of the land. Duke Arvis got wind of this and soon a tournament was announced. The son of Byron and son of Calf alike both would have mourned that they were unable to attend such a splendid affair. Kings, Dukes, Knights, and Nobles from all across the land were gathered in Belhalla. 

The jousting tournament saw a knight by the name of Lyson gain victory, and he was awarded gold and a title for his splendor on the battlefield. The Kings of Grannvale and the other city states were too old to compete and knew that the young men wouldn’t try their best against them anyways. The King of Thracia watched and glowered as he didn’t have many knights to attend to events such as jousting, and the dragon riders of southern Thracia weren’t exactly allowed to compete with men on horse. So no South Thracian man took home any gold or awards or honors since there were no competitions for them to compete in.

Before the banquet, Duke Byron received a response from his son Sigurd. While Sigurd had received the message from Duke Alvis that the cost of the banquet would be paid by him and the crown, Sigurd still saw fit to send money to assist the families of Chalpy and of Yngvi in any financial difficulties they might have. Duke Byron and Duke Ring were both quite pleased by this development.

The banquet arrived and the customary greetings of nobility based upon rank and station were exchanged. The younger men and women danced and exchanged longing glances from across the room while the older men and dignitaries and people of station talked of important affairs. 

“King Azmir.” The King of Leonster greeted the King of Grannvale. “There are people who might seek to drive a wedge between you and Prince Kurth, but such persons should be disregarded totally and completely. I had only ever met Prince Kurth a few times, as a child and as a young man, but everytime I met him, I was convinced of his worthy and noble character. Even if I thought my son would betray me, I would still give him everything. ”

King Azmir was moved and ashamed of doubts he’d had in the past. “I will take your words and place them deep within my heart. I will trust Prince Kurth always, as you suggest I should.”

The Dukes’ Reptor and Lombard regarded this development warily. Duke Byron and Duke Ring glared across the room at these two men with bemusement at their inner seething outrage. The Dukes of Friege and Dozel might have preferred if some minor member who needed their support became the heir to the Kingdom of Grannvale, but it was not likely to happen anytime soon.

There was food rushed by pegasus and dragon riders from all across the land. Verdanian deer and Augustrian boar cooked to perfection. The delicacies of the sea from all the distant shores of the continent. Even Isaachian delicacies made their way to the tables of those Kings and Dukes by way of an outrageous deal somehow made between Duke Arvis and Prince Mariccle at the agreement of the nobility of Grannvale, their mouths watering at the prospect of rare fishes and meats from the northeast. 

There was even more scandalously, desert treats and flavors that were said to have been inspired and influenced by the cuisine of the followers of Loptyr. The nobility might burn ordinary people at the stake for enjoying such delicacies, but they themselves didn’t forbid themselves from partaking in such things on occasion. 

\---

King Travant of Thracia was moving his eyes about the room, watching as the people around him ate and drank, he tried to copy their manners and ways and his sloppiness was apparent and obvious. The uncultured South Thracian anxiety that was typical of their nobility. If they had simply tried to create their own assortment of customs, they might not have appeared so pitiful.

King Travant had also delivered food and drink of southern Thracian origin to the assemblage of nobility, and he picked up a cup of wine which had a color much like that of the wine he had brought to the banquet as a south Thracian gift, and first smelled it and then drank it, realizing that it was not the wine that he had brought to the banquet and that it was indeed superior in flavor as well. In truth, none of the food that King Travant had brought was there at the banquet.

He exchanged a look with Duke Arvis who was known as the financier and organizer of this massive celebration. The Duke smiled and raised a glass of wine swirling it as he drank from it. The wine which appeared to be south Thracian wine was in truth wine which Duke Arvis had winemakers create for the purpose of undercutting an attempt by the south Thracians to enter other markets with a product of quality. The people of south Thracia would continue to have to work as mercenaries dying in other men’s wars a little longer.

King Travant gazed into that cup of wine in front of him, he’d spent money on a number of projects in a hope of relieving the poverty of his people. Blood and treasure, blood and treasure, down the drain, down the drain. The arms of south Thracia were no good because of the quality of smithing, and so the mercenaries of Thracia purchased arms from the Manster District. The local food was not good, and the people spent the money they made as mercenaries on luxuries for their wives and children, all the money and treasure, it wasn’t down the drain, it was in other kingdoms and cities pockets. One humiliation after another, one loss after another. 

King Travant would have to bring Thracian wine to foreign markets, but as a third rate product which people would perceive as an imitation of a wine that was in fact a superior imitation of the project that King Travant had created. King Travant’s duty and pride fought with each other. One humiliation after another, one humiliation after another.

When he later left the banquet, King Travant would see servants and people in the streets eating the food that he had brought to the banquet. 

\---

Deirdre made her debut that day, and all were awed and astounded by her beauty. None were more delighted and impressed by her than Duke Arvis. The Princess Deirdre was generous and kind to all who were before her and greeted her, from the lowliest knight to the highest King. 

On that note, the banquet ended pleasingly for most, but without happiness for many of the most important and ambitious men in the world, and the ambition was too much for the cup to bear. 

X: The lessons of day forgotten by night  
“We have news that you must know.” Duke Lombard said King Azmir, Duke Arvis, Duke Reptor, and the Princess Deirdre in attendance. “Prince Kurth announced a ceasefire with Prince Mariccle.”

“Not unusual for Prince Kurth to do so while his two most important aides are away.” Duke Arivs noted.

“Indeed.” Duke Reptor said with a grim look. “Except that he has extended that ceasefire to longer than Duke Byron and Duke Ring will be away from the battlefield, and we have another piece of troubling news. We chose not to let Duke Byron and Duke Ring know.”

There was a silence.

“Say it.” King Azmir said. “Say it.” He clutched at the hand of his grandchild, who comforted him with soothing words.

“Prince Shannan of Isaach and Princess Ayra of Isaach are members of Sigurd’s military.” Duke Lombard said. “Lord Sigurd trains Prince Shannan in the ways of fighting himself alongside Oifey of Chalpy. He allows Ayra of Isaach to lead his troops.”

“As we also know, Lady Edain is also located in Lord Sigurd’s military camp.” Duke Reptor continued. “There are numerous members of our families who have joined Lord Sigurd.”

“The Lady Edain does not get along well with her brother Andrey and there are reports that Duke Ring is having trouble choosing between the daughter and the son as heir of his Dukedom.” Duke Reptor noted. “Lord Lex and his father Duke Lombard don’t get along well either.”

King Azmir frowned.

“You are saying he is collecting unsatisfied elements of the nobility and planning to march on Belhalla?” Duke Arvis said with a smile. “Are you accusing my brother of rebellion?”

“How does your brother feel about you Duke Arvis?” Duke Reptor said. 

Duke Arvis glared. “I taught him magic. He is probably the second best wielder of flames in the world besides myself.”

“Oh? Well since you have so invested into your brother’s education you should perhaps be pleased to learn that it isn’t just Prince Shannan and Oifey of Chalpy who are learning swordsmanship from Sigurd, but also your dear brother Azelle. And not to mention, for his performance in battle, Sigurd has awarded him with a splendid horse and a fine sword and suit of armor, as well as tens of thousands of pieces of gold.”

“In addition to members of the nobility of Grannvale.” Duke Lombard interrupted. “Such as my son Lex, my spies report that he has also invited former thieves and bandits into his army, men and women who are skilled at spying and covert operations. Father Claude is also friendly with Lord Sigurd.”

“In addition to the nobility of Isaach residing in his army.” Duke Lombard continued. “He absorbed Verdanian and Augustrians into his military. Verdanian snipers who defected alongside Prince Jamke, remnants of Augustria who preferred to work for him than pay taxes to our own administrators that we put in place. Sigurd has issued many complaints on behalf of the people of Agustria on their behalf claiming that our administrators are overburdening and overtaxing the people, and they swarm to him and whisper in his ear. Oh. And Sigurd is protecting the Lady Lachesis.”

“In other words.” Duke Arvis said. “If he wished to, he could forment rebellions in Augustria and Verdane giving the people Prince Jamke and Lady Lachesis to rally around and he has members of all the prominent families of our Kingdom as loyal subjects. Still, he doesn’t seem to have many numbers does he?”

“It might seem so at first Duke Arvis.” Duke Lombard responded. “But think of this, his own personal guard, as well as that of my son and your brother, as well as Lady Edain among others, it would number in the thousands in terms of elite warriors. Adding to that Verdanian and Augustrians and persons of unknown stock, Lord Sigurd has an army of no less than ten thousand strong.”

“There have additionally been reports of pegasus knights in his army.” Duke Lombard continued. “Which gives us reason to believe that he has contact with Silessia’s Queen. This is not even mentioning his close friendship with Quan, heir to Leonster. Sigurd introduced his sister to Quan, it could very well be that even as a young man Sigurd had great ambitions.”

“Lord Sigurd.” Duke Reptor turned to King Azmir. “We might soon have to address him as ‘your majesty’.”

King Azmir shuddered. The forces of Grannvale were spread grievously thin. If Sigurd who had friends within Grannvale, allies in the north, his own army in the northwest, and allies in the southeast and northeast converged on Belhalla, could Grannvale achieve victory? Sigurd was a charismatic and capable man with loyal and talented people at his side.

King Azmir frowned. “Recall the army from Isaach. We must deal with Lord Sigurd.”

\---

“I am glad that you believe me as to what has truly happened in Rivough.” Prince Mariccle said appreciatively of Prince Kurth.

“I am glad as well. In addition, I have a list of names of people who were contemplating treason. You may do with it as you please. Here are their letters in this chest.”

The timing of the order recalling Prince Kurth’s royal army and sending it to deal with Sigurd could not be better for Prince Kurth. He had made a secret pact of peace with Prince Mariccle after learning of the truth of Rivough. As a gift to Prince Mariccle, while the body of his father had been lost, he had a statue carved of fragrant wood in the shape of King Mananan’s body in the full dress of an Isaachian warrior and the armies saw to the burying of this body.

And so began the march of Prince Kurth’s army to the new front with Silessia and northwest Augustria where it was suspected that Sigurd was formenting rebellion, in truth, part of the reason that Prince Kurth was returning is that he wished to attest to the innocence of his aid’s son, whom from what he’d heard, was an honorable and capable man. Prince Kurth was also eager to meet the woman who he’d heard was his very own daughter and engaged to marry Duke Arvis at the agreement of Prince Kurth’s father.

A few days after the royal army of Grannvale departed, Prince Mariccle called the officers of his army together. 

“In this chest in front of us, are all the correspondences of Prince Kurth and all the people who spoke with him. What do you think I should do with it?”

“You should open it. If we have written memorials to him, we can explain it ourselves or let the memorials explain for us.” Said the young warrior Leif, his young companion Sara besides him. 

Prince Mariccle smiled. “Anyone else have a suggestion?”

“Open it!” Rang out the voices of many of the most ardent loyalists. “Open it! Open it! Find out who the traitors are!”

Prince Mariccle took a torch from a soldier. “All of you look!” He took the torch and tossed it upon the chest. It began to smoke and burn.

“I myself had correspondences with Prince Kurth.” Said Mariccle. “I myself spoke with him, I also understand why many of you chose to write memorials to him. You wanted to leave a way out for yourselves when our kingdom was conquered.” Prince Mariccle looked at the men and women before him. “I understand. I am letting it go. Do you understand? I want your full loyalty! I want your solemn promises of loyalty in exchange for this mercy! Bow before your King. King Mariccle!”

All present bowed to King Mariccle and he took a crown and placed it atop his own head. The end of the war was as fitting a moment as any for the crowing of a new king.

\---

After rewards were meted out and a few punishments. Leif met with King Mariccle and requested that he be allowed to travel and join with Lord Sigurd.

King Mariccle frowned. “I promised Prince Kurth that I would not meddle in Grannvale’s affairs. No doubt, there are problems that could be exploited and that’s why Prince Kurth chose to make peace with me, even if you resigned from my army and I took your land away from you, your name is now known as my young commander who built a fortress of sand and ice and prevented Prince Kurth from conquering Isaach.”

Leif laughed. “That was Sara’s advice. You should thank her. I promise you this, I have no intention of harming Isaach in any way. I will also give you some other advice if you would listen to a lowly commander like myself who has been granted such grace by you.”

King Mariccle smiled. “Speak.”

Leif looked around at the nearby people besides Sara. King Mariccle sent them away. 

Leif spoke in a low whisper. “The servants of Loptyr have intentions of regaining power. The woman who was married to Duke Arvis recently, she is really the wife of Lord Sigurd! Now, where did Lord Sigurd meet her? He met her in Verdane, where the people who carry the blood of Loptyr tried to avoid interacting with servants of Loptyr who wish to revive that ancien Empire. One woman grew tired of this life in the forest, and she became the wife of the Duke of Velthomer. Who is Duke Arvis’ current wife? It just so happens that this woman was the child of a former wife of Duke Arvis’s father. Duke Arvis and that woman are related to each other, and what’s more, the blood of Loptyr runs in Duke Arvis’ veins, not to mention his wives’. I will have Sigurd brought before Duke Arivs and his new bride so that we can prove Arvis has plans to engage in bigamy, and of a woman who by his own statements, has forgotten her own memory.”

King Mariccle looked at Leif with shock. The young man had earned his trust on the battlefield, but what he was saying now seemed absurd. And yet, if it was the truth, to ignore it would also be absurd. 

“I will pen a letter to Prince Kurth. You will do so alongside me.”

Prince Kurth and Leif wrote a letter detailing everything that Leif knew, though in truth, it was more like Leif’s letter and King Mariccle was making it appear more legitimate. Sara, skilled with warp magic teleported the letter to Prince Kurth, and he was astounded by its contents. The blood in his veins might have alerted him to the truthfulness of the contents, or perhaps his duty as a crusader was too important for him to ignore the contents. He rushed to the capitol, both to learn if the contents were true and for other reasons involving Sigurd and his loyal aides. He also sent messages to Silessia and to Lord Sigurd despite the risk that they might be intercepted. Using warp magic, Prince Kurth returned to the capitol extremely quickly, unfortunately for him, he was also extremely tired because of this. He was breathing hard with fatigue as he walked to Duke Arvis’ home.

“Duke Arvis!” Prince Kurth exclaimed as he banged on the heavy wooden doors of the estate late at night. “Open the door!”

Duke Arvis was astounded by the rapid arrival of Prince Kurth. How could this be? He helped the exhausted Prince onto a couch and poured him refreshments. 

“Why have you come so early and so late my prince?” He inquired.

“Your future wife, my daughter.” The Prince gasped for air. “I believe that she might very well be your sister. Before you consummate your union we must see the truth of this matter.”

Duke Arvis jumped up shocked. “This is nonsense.” He said, his blood was seething.

The Prince gasped for air and took another sip of wine before he was able to breathe calmly. “Let me ask you Duke Arvis, I will not condemn you if it is so.” He looked Duke Arvis in the eyes. “Do you have the blood of Loptyr running through your veins?”

Duke Arvis clenched his hands. “If I did.”

The Prince sighed. “The woman I loved. The blood of Loptyr was weak in her, but if she joined in union with another who also had some lesser degree of the blood of Loptyr, that child could very well become a vessel of the Dark Dragon! Forgive me for saying this Arvis! But even if you love her, if what I’m told is true, you can’t marry her!”

Duke Arvis shook his head. “I don’t want to hear this.”

The Prince grasped Duke Arvis’ by the wrist. “Is it true that the blood of Loptyr runs through your veins!”

“It is true.” 

The voice was cold as ice. Prince Kurth turned around to see a black-cloaked man holding a tome of fel magic and a stave. He was still tired from his rapid journey and could not fight back well. If he hadn’t been so exhausted by using warp magic, he could have won easily, but alas! The crusader’s own desire to ensure that the power of Loptyr could not endure was undone by his own actions. Leif and King Mariccle would also be filled with grief if they knew that their message would send Prince Kurth to his death.

But he didn’t die quite yet. Duke Arvis knocked the prince out with a stunning blow to the head.

“Don’t kill him.” Duke Arvis said to the black-cloaked man. “You can erase his memory if you must. But do not kill him.”

Manfroy cackled. “My future emperor. Do you not want the world? Do you not want to be able to hold Deirdre close to you? My magic is imperfect, you need both Sigurd and your Prince to die if you want to rule the world. You might have hoped for those fools Lombard and Reptor to do it for you, to slay the prince, but you’ll have to do it yourself now. Now that the Prince knows the truth. His blood is too strong, if he were a little younger, I might allow your scheme to take his memories, even allow him to live in some little village on an island safe and sound, but he isn’t young, and he isn’t weak, so we have to kill him. I’ll do it, so you don’t have to feel the guilt of treason, I’ll destroy the body too.”

Duke Arvis glowered, yet he nodded his head and gave assent.

In the coming weeks, Duke Byron and the Gruuenritter would be placed under house arrest on suspicions towards Sigurd of Chalpy.

XI: Flight to Silessia  
“Ah, Lord Sigurd.” Alec grinned at his lord. “Look at what they’re saying about you now. Lord Sigurd has lost his wife! He seeks comfort in the night! Two lovers fair by his side! An Isaachian princess wasn’t enough! He sets flight for the northern queen’s rump! Alec let out a laugh.”

“Deirdre.” Sigurd let out a sigh.

Alec frowned. “Now see here my lord. You can’t just keep sighing like that. It’s depressing all of us.”

“Ahhhhh. Deirdre.” Sigurd let out another sigh.

Naoise smiled. “What you need my lord. Is something good to eat. There are many delicious foods in Silessia, have some of this.” He handed a plate of sumptuous goods to Sigurd.

“Ahhhh. Deirdre.” Sigurd let out another sigh.

“He isn’t like this when talking about politics.” Alec frowned. “Nor is he like this when we’re on flat ground. Or hilly ground for that matter. Or ground in general.”

“Ahhh. Deirdre.” Sigurd let out another sigh.

“Flying and having nothing to think about makes you get stuck on things like that doesn’t it my lord? But since we have to share the ride with you would you care to calm yourself?” Naoise said beggingly.

“Ahh. Deirdre.” Sigurd let out a sigh as he gazed at the moving surface of the water below, perhaps seeing her face in the water.

“Somebody switch spots with me!” Alec complained. The Pegasus rider scolded him and swatted his head. 

“Ahh. Deirdre.” Sigurd let out another sigh.

“The water. Doesn’t it look nice.” Naoise said to the woman whose pegasus was carrying him, and she in turn swatted him on the head just as Alec had suffered.

“Ahh. Deirdre.” Sigured let out another sigh.

“Ahhhhhhh! Deirdre!” Alec and Naoise let out a sigh of their own. 

And so the flight to Silesia from Augustria continued for several more hours across the seas through the cold northern winds. The messages from Prince Kurth had never made it to Sigurd. Who was it that obtained those messages? Read on.

XII: The Missing Prince  
“Lord Arvis! Our Prince has gone missing!” Duke Byron exclaimed. Clearly unhappy with the situation.

“Yes. We are looking everywhere for him. He sent a message to me that he was coming back early. Who knows why he might not have returned. He also arranged a peace with Isaach, without the court’s approval, but we would look rather bad if we broke it.” 

“Promise me you’ll find the Prince!” Duke Byron said. “We haven’t always seen eye to eye, but I assume that you have nothing to do with me being under house arrest. See to it that our Prince is found.”

Duke Arvis smiled. “Of course. I’ll do everything I can to ensure the Prince’s safety.”

\---

In the middle of the Aed Desert, Manfroy was filled with wicked delight. Although he had told Duke Arvis that he would kill Prince Kurth, Manfroy also had dark intentions of torture and pain for the man whose blood was filled with the most powerful of the dragons who slew Loptyr’s agents in the world.

“How are you my prince.” Manfroy grinned ugily.

“How did you persuade Duke Arvis to work for you?” Prince Kurth grimaced at wounds made by Manfroy’s own hands. 

“Work for me? Ah. Someone who sees the truth. The man is dancing in the palm of my hand. He of course doesn’t realize it himself.” Manfroy grinned. “A vessel for Loptyr will be born into this world, would you care to watch from the afterlife, or from where you sit?”

Prince Kurth looked Manfroy in the eyes, he’d been forced to sit on a chair and tied to it. There were needles on the chair and they’d pierced through the Prince’s thighs where a painful but non-lethal poison was now coursing through his veins.

Manfroy was impressed by Prince Kurth’s ability to avoid screaming with pain, but he had no intention of stopping until the Prince did so.

“How much of a man is in his memories?” Manfroy queried the Prince. “If we take away your memories, if we take away the thoughts of that lover of yours could you fall for another? Without remembering you’re a prince, would you still be just as righteous? Would you scream as we drove screws under your nails?”

Manfroy smiled. “You are weak enough now. We shall see if we can make you scream.”

\---

The man awoke in the dark not knowing who he was. He did not recall his name. Who was he? The dark cell filled with miserable men. There was nought but maggot filled bread to eat. The man’s body had been covered in injuries that were healed before he’d been put in the cell with other men, he didn’t realize it because of the dark, but he was covered with scars all over numerous parts of his body.

He was in fact, healthier and stronger than most of the other desperately poor souls in the cell. There was a rotting corpse of a man in the corner of a room. One insane man tried to feast on the flesh and the man who did not have a name tried to pull the other man without a name back from the corpse. 

And then one day, the nameless men were sent out into the desert to gather plants. The men who tried to eat them were killed. The nameless man who did not eat any or try to sneak any and endured thought of escaping, but he looked across the desert and did not think it possible to live. Still, the sands seemed to sift easily under his feet compared to the other men around him, and the hot sand did not seem to burn his feet as it did the others. What did that mean? The man did not know, he did not know that the other men’s feet were burned by the sand in a way that his were not. 

At night, some men were forced to sit out in the desert which became extremely cold. The man didn’t mind when he was punished in this way, as he could endure the hot and cold better because of his magical talents that he was not aware of, and the man at the very least knew that he did not like the wretched scent of dead men within the cell.

Over the many long days the man’s fair skin was tanned by the sun’s rays. He and the other men began to recognize each other. They recognized each other by face and did not seem to feel a need to call each other by names. Perhaps it was because all of those men had been injured and beaten and tortured so that their vocal cords were damaged and it was painful to speak. Perhaps it was because there was some tacit understanding that they would be harmed if they spoke by the cruel men who watched over them. Either way, the nameless man faced a difficult and lonely time ahead. There was little camaraderie between the different men in spite of the understanding they seemed to have with each other. Every man guarded jealously what plants were safe or unsafe to eat, what was poison or not. Eventually, all the men in a group died and were replaced, but the one nameless man persevered.

\---

The men from different groups who survived were eventually sent to a work camp where they mined for jewels that would be used for fel magic and other rituals. Manfroy watched the man who had once been known as Kurth with delight as his body withered away. A day, a week, a month, it was all it took for a man most impressive to wither away as his body ate away at its own meat in order to sustain itself in harsh conditions.

Manfroy was an arrogant man. He was exceptionally fond of the gamble and was willing to risk his own ruin where it was never necessary. His own ego dominated him near totally. While he spoke of the injustice of eking out a living on rocks and sand in the desert, it did not seem to stop him from forcing those he disliked within the followers of Loptyr from living an even harsher life in the desert gathering plants to survive.

Deep within tunnels hidden below the sand and in catacombs beneath a seemingly ruined city. Manfroy and his followers whispered and hummed and conducted experiments using dark magic. Dark magic was deeply consuming and said to eat away at and consume a person’s mind or soul or otherwise take something away from them. Something intangible, but surely something, to the point that most people who knew a dark magic user would suggest that something was off once someone was able to call themselves a master of the dark majiks.

The man who was known as Kurth before did not remember his name, but eventually, he seemed to remember that certain plants could be used for healing, how to heal wounds, and he began to do so for others. He became much like the leader of the slaves, though he was careful to make sure that none of the black-robed men were around when he performed these tasks.

Eventually, the man who was once named Kurth was taken to a black cloaked man who regarded him as having the potential for magic, and so began a painful process. He altered the man’s vocal cords so that they could form the strange words and rhythms necessary for the speaking of the words in dark magic, and so light magic could not leave those lips from which light magic used to flow like a song, now a dark hymn could leave those lips that left the world a tremble.

That man was taken under the ground, where his now tanned skin was slowly allowed to fade to a paler color once more. Dark tomes were held in his hand and he was instructed to speak the verses and copy them in a small room which prevented a man from sitting down properly or standing up because of their small size. 

He was taken in by another seemingly faceless man in a dark cloak, and that dark cloaked man taught him a story of the oppression of the followers of Loptyr, of their once great empire and the greatness that was once theirs. The man troubled at the injustice of it all. Being forced to search for scraps on the surface desperately, a sickening outrage. The Crusaders had to pay. The descendants of the Crusaders had even stolen the man’s memory for being a follower of Loptyr, what an injustice! The man strangely seemed to hold little ill will towards the dark cloaked men, in spite of his memories beginning in a cell after having been tortured by them.

That man was rehabilitated into the society of the people in those dark tunnels and catacombs. In fact, there were tunnels with holes in them to allow sunlight in, so that crops could be grown with the power of the sun beneath the ground. A nearby underground river was used to irrigate crops. The openings for the sun had containers to catch and move sand as it fell from above. To avoid sand falling onto the crops, the light was allowed in at an angle rather than coming from directly overhead.

The man was eventually given a name: Poaceae. Poaceae diligently attended to his studies. He knew why he’d been in the cell when his memories began. He’d ran from a crime he committed to a fellow follower of Loptyr and also nearly given away the knowledge of Loptyr when his memories were taken by the descendants of the crusaders, but Loptyr was just, if he could survive the harsh conditions, by law he would be allowed to return to society. If he had talent and was willing to undergo it, he could learn dark magic for the purpose of assisting in the retaking of the old empire.

As a reward for his learning and skills with staves and healing magic. He was given a wife who did not seem to mind his appearance scarred by wounds. Her name was Sedge. 

The marriage ceremony was presided over by a dark cardinal. Poaceae and Sedge joined their hands and the cardinal hummed a dark spell and touched the tips of their hands with a spear with a head that looked like a snake. A burning feeling welled up within Poaceae and Sedge and joined the fingertips before passing into the other person. A necklace was then placed around each of their necks and with their free hand which was not joined for the earlier part of the ceremony, they touched the necklace of the other person to their chests over their heart and again a burning feeling and a mark was emblazoned on their chests.

Next, they drank wine from a gourd which had been split in half and where the two halves were tied together by a string. They looked into each other’s eyes as they drank the burning liquid. They then ate the meat of animals that were regarded as special to Loptyr: Scorpion and Snake. 

Finally, they went to bed together.

XIII: Between Isaach and Silesia  
It was in mid 760 that the civil war in Silesia ended. Military activity in Grannvale had come to a halt with the disappearance of the Prince and they failed to send troops in spite of requests by some of the competitors in the civil war. There was some frustration on the part of many individuals that they couldn’t intervene in Silesia’s war because of the inner turmoil, but it couldn’t be helped.

Leif of Isaach came as an envoy to Silesia to treat with the Queen of Silesia and with Sigurd of Chalpy, now an exiled traitor. Leif explained that he represented the will of King Mariccle and that the decision to go to war or not was his to make. Queen Silesia was pleased by this information and revealed that she had a piece of information of great importance.

“The servants of Loptyr are attempting to once again gain power in this world.” Queen Rahna said. She brought forth a document. Upon it was emblazoned the seal of Prince Kurth. “Prince Kurth before he disappeared felt that there was reason to believe this.”

Leif felt bitterness in his heart when he heard this, but said nothing. It was better to be quiet for now, and observe what Sigurd would do, as well as Prince Lewyn, who had been empowered by his mother the queen to lead all of Silesia’s armies. 

Sigurd was most astounded by the news that his wife was the same Deirdre as his own. While he of course knew that the name of Arvis’ new wife was Deirdre, it was obviously not so uncommon a name as for him to assume that it was his very own wife. Despite this, the fact that the households of Chalpy and the Gruenritter were under house arrest in Belhalla caused him to be wary.

Lewyn, on his part as an ally of Sigurd, was also reluctant to intervene given that he wished no harm to come to the members of Sigurd’s household or Sigurd’s father. Leif understood that, but he pointed out that Prince Kurth’s disappearance was too suspicious and that what was in the note might have been very accurate given that someone wanted him gone.

“Even so, the royal army remains intact.” Lewyn replied. “You failed to destroy their army or reduce its size greatly. Not that we blame you.”

Leif was annoyed. “The royal army of Grannvale was more than four times the size of our own. The fact we held out is a miracle. Let alone destroying the royal army.”

“As long as we can find Prince Kurth, we should be able to avoid having Arvis take control of Grannvale. Of all the people, someone with the blood of Loptyr should never be allowed on that throne.” Lewyn said

“We don’t even know if he’s alive.” Leif said. “It’s likely that the remnants of Loptyr in the desert have him if he is, and he probably wouldn’t even know who he was after the torture, let alone have the ability to testify that Arvis is fornicating with his own sister.”

“Finding Prince Kurth is the most bloodless method that there is to resolving this issue.” Prince Lewyn stated. “Isaach and Silesia don’t have the funds for a long campaign, and Sigurd, Sigurd just spent all his funds helping Silesia in its own civil war because he sent so much money to his father before he was then ruled an outlaw.”

Sigurd sighed. “I couldn’t have known.”

Father Claude who had been watching the discussion remonstrated on behalf of Sigurd. “It was my fault. I should have helped lord Sigurd be more aware of the proceedings in the capitol.”

“If you had. You wouldn’t have been forced out of the clergy Father Claude.” Lewyn said, perhaps a little too unkindly.

Father Claude sighed. “Yes, I was careless. I was aware of the ambitions of Duke Reptor and Duke Lombard, however, Duke Arvis was especially vicious in forcing me out of Belhalla. I was shocked by it. In fact, he tried to have me removed more violently than either of the two dukes.”

Queen Rahna sighed. “So military activity will have to wait for a while.”

“I would suggest preparing for at least half a year, until 761.” Replied Sigurd. He was actually the most skilled military commander in the room, and so everyone agreed to abide by his suggestion. An alliance was sealed between Queen Rahna and King Mariccle with Leif acting on King Mariccle’s behalf. “And ultimately, what the content of this letter states can’t be proven without going to Belhalla ourselves to prove it. We shouldn’t start rumors or anything of that nature either, while it might be effective, if it is false, it is irresponsible and undignified even if it is advantageous.”

The ever honourable Sigurd. Leif thought to himself.

\---

“Large scale conflict between different tribes has broken out in Verdane.” Duke Arvis reported to King Azmir. “And our administrators are warning that without additional military staff and soldiers, we won’t be able to hold onto the land.”

“Let it go.” Duke Lombard scoffed. “Nothing but forests and stupid savages as far as the eye can see.”

“Father Claude who met Prince Jamke and came back to Belhalla did not think the Prince was a mere savage.” Duke Arvis retorted.

“An outrageous priest who I hear has married some lowly dancer and has committed treacherous crimes conspiring with Sigurd and trying to trick us into allowing the traitor into the city!” Duke Reptor waved the comment aside. 

“Ah, I have heard that Sigurd has arranged a number of marriages between the members of his army. The soldiers from all of our houses that no longer obey us.” Duke Lombard said.

“They were not arranged marriages.” Duke Arvis said. “As far as I can tell, local people have reported to our spies that they were marriages based on romantic feelings.”

Duke Lombard scowled at Duke Arvis. “Have your senses taken leave of you? Your own bastard brother Azelle has married Tailtiu. He can become Duke of Velthomer and Friege. Is that not a political marriage?”

Duke Arvis glared. “Do not refer to him like that.”

“He is a bastard.”

“He is my brother.”

The two men glared at each other. Duke Reptor broke the uneasy silence. 

“What is important. Is that you have given leave to have Azelle inherit Velthomer should you not have a child, and large amounts of land should you have a child. You have given him a right to Velthomer.”

Duke Lombard squeezed his hands tightly. “I spoke out of turn Duke Arvis. Let us behave as men of our station should.” He turned to King Azmir. “Your majesty? What would you have us do in regards to the problem of Sigurd? And of his father Duke Byron and the Gruenritter?”

Old King Azmir sitting on the throne seemed to lift his head, and all the Dukes bent their heads to try and hear what he had to say, and he began to snore loudly.

\---

“If Prince Kurth was still alive, he would likely be somewhere in the desert your majesty.” Leif said to King Mariccle. “So I would like to form a force of picked men to comb the desert in search of him.”

King Mariccle nodded his assent.

The search did not go well for the next several months. The servants of Loptyr were not ready for a fight, and they were quite skilled at remaining hidden in the desert. While Leif did not lose any men, he also did not come with one more. In spite of this, other desert people with no relation to the servants of Loptyr agreed to come under the protection of Isaach and to provide information on the happenings in the desert. 

This was as much of a prize as King Mariccle could hope for it seemed. King Mariccle became the King Of Isaach and the Grann Desert in all but name. This was recognized By Silesia and disputed by Grannvale, but Grannvale’s Royal Army was carved like a cake between the Four Great Dukes: Duke Arvis, Duke Ring, Duke Lombard, and Duke Reptor.

Duke Ring quietly slipped away from the capitol where Duke Lombard and Duke Reptor forced him out, while Duke Arvis, Duke Lombard, and Duke Reptor looked for justifications to slay Duke Byron and his Gruennritter who were under house arrest.

XIV: Poaceae and Sedge  
The arranged marriages among the followers of Loptyr were primarily based around one factor: Whether it would produce children that would be useful to them. In the case of Poaceae and Sedge, the marriage was based upon the capability to use magic skillfully. Poaceae and Sedge were both masters of magic of a number of forms and especially of dark magic. 

The love that grew between the two was not a love that was fast or easy or passionate, but rather, the affection of two people that are put together and are generous and kind enough to understand the heart of another person. 

Among many of the followers of the Loptyr are people who want nothing more than revenge against the descendents of the crusaders, but there are also people who were content to live within the tunnels and understood the reason that the followers of Loptyr were hated. A few here and there would leave the tunnels and try to blend in with the ordinary people around them, and then they would accidentally reveal what they were, and many of them would be burned at the stake.

Poaceae had the character of those who seek revenge, of a dark crusader for Loptyr, while Sedge had the character of one who was content to live in the desert. In spite of this difference, they learned to grow fond of each other, and Sedge clung to her husband desperately as she felt his urge to burst out from the ground and search for the people who’d taken his memories and punish them.

The other reason for Poaceae’s eager desire for the fight was that he had been told he’d committed crimes towards followers of Loptyr, this guilt burned in him like a hot coal, and only the restoration of the Church of Loptyr, of the Loptyr Empire could assuage that guilt.

Poaceae decided one day that he could not abide lurking in tunnels anymore, and he snuck out with a bag of supplies and gold into the sands of the desert with memories of a map in his mind. He had a warp staff in hand, a tool which the servants of Loptyr were masters of crafting in comparison to those above ground, and using the memory of a map he looked at beneath the dunes, he moved eastward at great speed.


End file.
